Travis County on par for record number of evictions in 2024, says tenant rights group

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A local tenant rights group debuted a new eviction tracking tool last month, compiling 10 years of data into an online dashboard. While analyzing that data, BASTA Austin said the Austin-Travis County area is poised to see a record number of eviction filings this year.

In a release, BASTA Austin said its eviction dashboard is a first of its kind tool for the area. The agency said it provides a more precise look at eviction data, allowing those that use it to see filings in their zip code and neighborhoods.

BASTA Austin issued a summarized report on evictions over the last two years when it rolled out its dashboard.

According to the agency, evictions are filed disproportionately where people of color live, 20 large properties are responsible for 17% of all evictions filed and the number of eviction filings is growing.

According to the dashboard, there were about 200 eviction filings in April 2022 compared to 800 in April 2024.

"We're seeing that 2024 will be the year that has the most evictions ever filed on record," BASTA Austin Data Analyst Peishi Cheng said.

Cheng said the trend is concerning as each number represents a household potentially lost.

"Many tenants are just one unexpected hardship of life away from facing eviction. As you can imagine with rents increasing over the last 10 years more people are at this precipice," Cheng said.