With eviction moratoriums overturned on a federal level and once again about to expire in many states, the housing crisis for renters could be about to reach a peak. And nearly 3.7 million people say they feel it is somewhat or very likely they’ll be tossed out in the next two months.
The most recent U.S. Census Bureau Household Pulse Survey, which was conducted from Aug. 18-30, finds that nearly 7.7 million Americans are behind on their rent. Nearly half, some 3.3 million, are one or two months behind, but 1.1 million are more than six months behind on rent payments (with nearly 744,000 being behind by eight months or more).
Around 1.3 million renters say it’s “very likely” they’ll be evicted in the next two months. Another 2.3 million say it’s “somewhat likely”.
The numbers are an escalation of already worrisome predictions about an eviction crisis facing America. In late August, Goldman Sachs warned that as many as 750,000 households could face eviction before the end of the year.
While the government has taken steps to make it easier for renters at risk to receive funds from the Emergency Rental Assistance program, it’s unlikely that money will arrive in time for thousands of families.
Here’s how the numbers break down by major metropolitan city, both in how many people are behind on rent and how many say it’s “very likely” they’ll face eviction within two months:
New York
– 938,595 people behind on rent
– 65,932 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Los Angeles
– 673,235 people behind on rent
– 158,537 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Chicago
– 273,369 people behind on rent
– 67,095 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Dallas
– 102,518 people behind on rent
– 22,777 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Houston
– 199,179 people behind on rent
– 41,983 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Washington, D.C.
– 122,054 people behind on rent
– 18,493 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Miami
– 351,299 people behind on rent
57,132 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Philadelphia
– 81,515 people behind on rent
– 12,609 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Atlanta
– 183,997 people behind on rent
– 32,233 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Phoenix
– 65,433 people behind on rent
– 22,326 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Boston
– 72,955 people behind on rent
– 1,107 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
San Francisco
– 94,567 people behind on rent
– 4,040 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Detroit
– 135,636 people behind on rent
– 22,032 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
Seattle
– 60,000 people behind on rent
– 2,033 “very likely” to face eviction in next two months
To put the eviction crisis in perspective, nearly as many homeowners—some 7.2 million, according to the Census Bureau are behind on their mortgage payments. However, due to forbearance and other programs offered by lenders, only 396,000 of those homeowners say it’s “very likely” they’ll face foreclosure in the next two months.
More finance coverage from Fortune:
- How a mythical $1 trillion coin became everyone’s favorite solution to the U.S. debt problem
- Bitcoin has another major pollution problem brewing
- NBA star Stephen Curry talks book clubs and investment in reading subscription service Literati
- Correction protection: Surprising ways to cushion a portfolio during a downturn
- China’s Bitcoin ban could be a buying opportunity
Subscribe to Fortune Daily to get essential business stories straight to your inbox each morning.
