Zafar
@zafarshah.bsky.social
42 followers 70 following 110 posts
Housing policies, impact of evictions, and the rights of people first. Coming to you from Maryland, USA.
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zafarshah.bsky.social
Read the 2025 Out of Reach report for Maryland. nlihc.org/sites/defaul...
Corporate presentation receives applause. Overlaid text reads: The average Maryland renter's wage is now $22 per hour. They need $33 per hour to afford a one-bedroom apartment. They'll keep falling behind!
zafarshah.bsky.social
Ending the 30-day eviction notice in fed-regulated properties "is a part of a larger push from corporate landlords who have lobbied the Trump administration to reduce eviction protections for tenants."

It's a public-private partnership for war on the poor.
Trump the Landlord Plans to Speed Up Evictions From Public Housing
The Trump administration is pushing a rule change that would speed up the eviction process by providing tenants less notice.
theintercept.com
zafarshah.bsky.social
Maryland legislators are already cranking up new proposals for 2026 to "stop squatters" -- such as a "peace order" style process to evict people on a moment's notice and worry about due process later.
rollingstone.com
“There’s no real evidence of any significant squatting crisis despite what the industry claims,” says Eric Dunn, director of litigation at the National Housing Law Project (NHLP).

More: www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...
zafarshah.bsky.social
"ALEC-aligned legislators... used the anti-squatter push in Texas to unsuccessfully advance a broad-based attack on the rights of tenants, and in Maryland, to successfully push back against Good Cause Eviction reforms."

Maryland has some explaining to do...

www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...
Red States Are Suddenly Cracking Down on Squatters -- Despite No Evidence of a Crisis
Several Republican states have recently passed anti-squatting bills that resemble model legislation pushed by the right-wing group ALEC.
www.rollingstone.com
zafarshah.bsky.social
Maryland law now requires rescheduling of evictions during extreme (aka excessive) heat warnings. But Wednesday's scorcher is a heat advisory, meaning the heat index will reach only 105-109F instead of the requisite 110F.

Is it really progress that we're putting folks out at 105F?
Reposted by Zafar
bsamuels72.bsky.social
Texas housing policy & wide empty spaces may result in more housing production for the mid-class but it falls just as short as blue states in affordable housing for those most impacted by the housing crisis who are left unprotected by Texas’ weak social safety net & landlord-tenant laws.
zafarshah.bsky.social
Read the 2025 Out of Reach report for Maryland. nlihc.org/sites/defaul...
Corporate presentation receives applause. Overlaid text reads: The average Maryland renter's wage is now $22 per hour. They need $33 per hour to afford a one-bedroom apartment. They'll keep falling behind!
zafarshah.bsky.social
Antoine Lovell at Morgan State U:
Maryland "needs an audacious, justice-based housing agenda that prioritizes that all individuals, no matter income levels, have a safe and secure place they can call home.

Squatting is not an epidemic. Inequity is the epidemic." 🔨
Squatting in Maryland is not a crime epidemic — it's a housing crisis - Maryland Matters
Recent news stories may indicate otherwise, but squatting is not an epidemic, writes Antoine Lovell, and it's not a crime: It's a sign of housing inequity that forces people to make desperate choices,...
marylandmatters.org
zafarshah.bsky.social
'Big Beautiful' $45B for detention centers could instead finance an estimated 163,600 new affordable apartments through the Low Income Housing Tax Credit.

It could prevent imminent eviction for between 9.8M and 16.6M households.

It could prevent around 59M utility shutoffs.
zafarshah.bsky.social

The budget for ICE (not including all other parts of DHS) is now $55B.

'Big Beautiful' funding for detention centers alone is $45B.

How much for the housing crisis? The entire proposed FY26 HUD budget is $38B.

$0 to prevent evictions. $0 for community dev block grant.
zafarshah.bsky.social
If Realtors want more customers (i.e., young adults leaving the family home), they should lobby for those customers to have higher wages, universal healthcare, affordable childcare, and investment in public education.
zafarshah.bsky.social
Here's the real story:
For Baltimore, MD --
* Income Needed to Afford Rent, 04/2025: $75,158
* Change in Needed Income Since 04/2020: 29.6%

Did young Baltimore renters see 30% earnings increases over the past 5 yrs? This isn't even factoring new student debt policy and rising healthcare costs.
Number of markets where renters need to earn $100K to afford rent has doubled since 2020 - May 12, 2025
zillow.mediaroom.com
zafarshah.bsky.social
This story gives terrible advice based on a 2.3% YOY dip in 1BR rents. Worse, the talking point of "see, rents are falling on their own" pops up in serious policy conversations. Reality is this: from 2020 to 05/2025 median rents rose 29% (43% for single-family homes) while renters' wages rose 23%.
The Case for Moving Out: Why Adult Kids Still Living With Their Parents Should Get Their Own Place—Now
Rents are falling for the first time in years, but millions of young adults aren’t moving out. Experts say the delay might be costing them.
www.sfgate.com
zafarshah.bsky.social
Here's some data:
3,636 "wrongful detainer" cases filed vs. alleged squatters in 2024.

4,806 cases filed vs. renters bc their leases were non-renewed without cause.

For media & many MD legislators, only the first one reflects a crisis.

*Waiting for Sun stories on eviction w/out cause*... 7/7
zafarshah.bsky.social
We've also not heard any data on the supposed squatter crisis. Anecdotes, tweets & TV news clips, yes. But numbers? This is a rare instance in which bill proponents could not show the scope of the problem, still passed their bill on the first try & now seem to want to keep legislating the issue. 6/7
zafarshah.bsky.social
The Sun itself reported on the fraud against scammed would-be renters. Is a 2-3 week eviction process fair to them? We've heard nothing from Delegate Nawrocki, Senator Watson & other tough-on-squatter folks about how they want to address the revictimization caused by expedited evictions. 5/7
zafarshah.bsky.social
Is 4 weeks too long for due process in a busy court system? Note that judges could (and likely will) issue warrants within 2 days after trial & sheriffs could schedule these evictions the next day if they want (or if pressured to). SB46 could often look more like a 2-3 week eviction process. 4/7
zafarshah.bsky.social
The anti-squatter bill requires trial as early as 5 business days after filing in court & not more than 10. Let's assume it takes 10 biz days and also assume 5 days for issuance of a warrant and 1 week to schedule eviction, all of which are commonplace: That's eviction ~4 weeks after filing. 3/7
zafarshah.bsky.social
The Sun's estimate of 7 weeks for eviction under SB46 is actually the outer limit, likely extended by appeal or by a sheriff's delay. Appeals would be an exceedingly rare delay bc the 'squatter' must pay a cash bond to stop eviction while waiting for the appeal to be heard. 2/7
zafarshah.bsky.social
In April the Maryland General Assembly passed SB46 to expedite the eviction process for suspected squatters... The Sun reports: "Observers say the legislation... might still take at least seven weeks to reach a point where law enforcement can serve an eviction."

That's misleading. Here's why 🧵 1/7
Maryland woman associated with squatter homes refuses interview
During the past month, alleged unauthorized occupants, or squatters, in properties throughout the Baltimore region have repeatedly pointed Spotlight on Maryland to the Instagram account “nayo…
www.baltimoresun.com
zafarshah.bsky.social
Tenant vouchers will merge with Public Housing, Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA), Section 202 Housing for the Elderly + Section 811
Housing for Persons with Disabilities into a $31.79B State Rental Assistance Block Grant program.

The prior administration funded tenant vouchers alone at $32B.
zafarshah.bsky.social
@nlihc.org‬ has the analysis of the Administration's federal housing budget. It sounds the alarm. 🚨 nlihc.org/sites/defaul...

The headline is a 43% ($26.72 billion) funding cut for HUD rental assistance programs. The details are nerve-racking: