101 / Understanding eviction data / with Juan Pablo Garnham

Juan Pablo Garnham — Communications and Policy Engagement Manager at the ⁠Princeton Eviction Lab⁠ — is in good traffic this week for a conversation about the hidden scale of America's eviction crisis and why the data didn't exist until recently. Before 2018, there was no way to answer a simple question: how many evictions happen in the United States each year? The lab, founded by Matthew Desmond after winning the Pulitzer Prize for Evicted, set out to change that — and in doing so, revealed eviction not as a symptom of poverty, but as a cause of it.

Juan Pablo walks through the lab's two core offerings: the ⁠National Eviction Map⁠, which tracks every county from 2000 to 2018, and the ⁠Eviction Tracking System⁠, which monitors over 30 cities and ten states month by month since the pandemic began. He explains why collecting this data remains extraordinarily difficult — most states don't mandate reporting, courts lack technology or willingness to share records — and how the lab works with journalists, policymakers, and advocates to turn raw numbers into impact.

The research is clear: Black and Latino families face eviction at rates several times higher than white families, mothers with young kids are especially vulnerable, and one eviction can trigger a cascade of financial and health consequences that become nearly impossible to escape.

We also touch on: Why eviction data matters for housing policy. How teachers often see the warning signs first. The domino effect of a single financial shock. Car dependency as a hidden eviction risk. Illegal lockouts and 911 call data. Why Portland, New York, and Santiago all taught him something about commuting. What it takes to make technical research accessible and actionable.

Timeline:

00:00 Juan Pablo Garnham is in good traffic.

02:48 What the Princeton Eviction Lab does.

03:29 Matthew Desmond and the founding story.

04:29 Two main products: data and research.

05:03 The National Eviction Map.

05:30 The Eviction Tracking System.

05:57 Why getting eviction data is still so hard.

06:46 Research on impacts and demographics.

07:32 Juan Pablo's role in communications and policy.

08:26 Why focus so intensely on evictions?

09:23 Eviction causes poverty, not the other way around.

10:15 Eviction as an indicator of housing crisis.

13:38 Who is most impacted by evictions?

16:54 Racial and demographic disparities.

21:01 The cascade of consequences after eviction.

25:33 How the data gets used by advocates and policymakers.

30:56 Making research accessible to non-academics.

35:31 Early warning signs before evictions happen.

45:54 Teachers as first responders to housing instability.

47:25 Low savings and car dependency as risk factors.

48:41 Health problems and unexpected costs.

49:14 Illegal lockouts and 911 data.

50:07 Black and Latino families with kids at highest risk.

50:58 The commute question.

51:18 New York subway as people-watching classroom.

52:09 Portland's bikeable scale.

53:18 Wrapping up and staying connected.