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After Charla's landlord failed to repair leaks that caused the ceiling to collapse in her daughter's bedroom, she withheld her rent. Shortly after, her landlord filed an eviction case against her for nonpayment.

Though she won her court case, Charla and her family had to remain in unsafe conditions as she searched for new housing and was repeatedly denied. She says she spent at least US$2,000 on unsuccessful application fees.

"When we go to find new housing, we can't because we have these [filings] on our records, and that's wrong," said Charla, a pseudonym. "I won [my] case … It's still following me. Why?"

We are researchers who study . Our most documents the far-reaching of eviction filings for 29 Pennsylvania tenants who experienced a "best-case scenario" in court.

Each of the tenants included in our study had legal representation and had their case resolved with a dismissal, withdrawal or a win. No one received an eviction order in court. We asked tenants in our study to describe the costs and losses they had experienced since their landlord filed to evict them.

We found that regardless of a tenant's outcome in court, eviction filings led to immediate and long-term housing instability, income loss and job insecurity, harm to physical and mental health, and strained relationships with family and friends.

Permanent stains on tenant records

Rising rents and stagnant wages have turned eviction into a for poor and working-class renters. In 2023, Pennsylvania residents needed to work the equivalent of per week at minimum wage to afford the average cost of a two-bedroom rental.

After a significant reduction in eviction filings due to pandemic-era programs, filing rates in Pennsylvania have . In 2023, landlords filed against Pennsylvania tenants. This is the equivalent of 7 in every 100 renter households.

When a landlord files an eviction complaint against a tenant, the court generates a public record. In Pennsylvania, these records remain public indefinitely—even when the records are , the case is never argued before a judge or the tenant wins in court.

Our research confirms that simply being named in an eviction complaint is enough to on a tenant's record that has lasting consequences for their well-being.

Future rental applications denied

Landlord filing and screening practices exacerbate the effects of Pennsylvania's housing crisis and make it nearly impossible for tenants with to find safe, decent and affordable housing for their families.

Growing research documents landlords' increasing reliance on the use of third-party and internet searches to apply of applicants with eviction records.

In our study, 8 in 10 participants said their eviction filing limited their future housing options. Nearly two-thirds of participants who moved after their eviction filing said a prospective landlord asked about their eviction record, and over half said a landlord explicitly denied their application because of it.

"[A] lot of people don't want to hear your backstory. They just see that you went to court and they think you are going to be a problem," another study participant said.

Because evictions in the U.S. are and , tenant screening practices that blacklist applicants based on eviction records by preventing these groups from accessing future housing.

Cycle of instability

Though participants in our study did not receive eviction orders in court, the majority said they were forced to move after their eviction filing for reasons beyond their control. Most attributed this to their landlords' failure to make repairs, which rendered their units uninhabitable.

allow tenants to withhold rent if their unit is unfit for habitation and are intended to protect them against for doing so. Still, 1 in 4 Pennsylvania tenants in our study faced eviction after withholding rent for repairs.

Charla said she developed stress-related medical conditions and was in and out of the hospital after her eviction filing.

Landlords "put us in situations where we have to move because they don't want to make repairs. Then they take us to court and try to make it seem like it's all our fault," she stated. "The system failed us."

An array of circumstances led to participants' evictions. Some faced prolonged pandemic-related hardships such as job loss, reduced work hours and deaths of loved ones. Others dealt with , including lack of heat, running water and mold. In some cases, tenants described being by their landlords. Some experienced , with their landlord filing multiple eviction cases against them at the same property.

In other words, there was often much more to tenants' stories than simply the nonpayment of rent.

Roughly half of the tenants who moved after their eviction filing described a subsequent period of homelessness.

The desperate need for a stable place to live led some to accept substandard conditions from landlords who would rent to them despite their records. This aligns with prior research showing that landlord eviction practices and code violations concentrate tenants in that can be .

Our research also showed that tenants with prior eviction records were often hesitant to assert their right to habitable housing. For example, 43% of participants reported being less willing to advocate for repairs after their eviction filing.

Efforts to seal eviction records

Due to the severity of the in the U.S., significant and widespread use of services, at least , including , and , limit public access to eviction records or regulate how landlords can consider eviction histories in tenancy decisions.

Because tenant screening companies can gather details from eviction records as soon as the information is public, and organizations such as the , and have recommended laws that automatically and permanently seal eviction records at the point of filing to keep the information private.

With support from , Pennsylvania policymakers are considering legislation to seal eviction records but face .

Just as Pennsylvania's , passed in 2018, has enabled people with criminal records to access housing and economic opportunities, eviction record-sealing can remove unjust barriers for people with eviction records. We believe this is a necessary first step to promote access to the safe and stable housing that all Pennsylvanians deserve.

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