Housing Advocates Praise Eviction Reform Bill Introduction in Del. House
DOVER, Del. – Renters in Delaware may soon have some new protections when eviction actions are taken against them as part of a new bill that just passed the State Senate.
Senate Bill 101 would allow for those at or below 200% of the poverty line to have legal representation at eviction hearings while creating a $3 million fund to help pay for it.
“You see a huge power differential where almost always property managers have someone representing their interests in court to make the decision and very rarely do the tenants,” said Housing Alliance Delaware Director Rachel Stucker.
She says her organization has been working to advocate for the change, and even the playing field in court between tenants and landlords.
“Really what this bill says is tenants have the right to have someone, that doesn’t need to be a lawyer it can be a court-appointed person that a legal aid entity would train, to help tenants,” she said.
Having legal representation can be the key difference in cases, as up to 30% of Delaware eviction cases are won by default, as renters fail to appear in the court fearing an inevitable outcome.
“Showing up is half the battle if you don’t show up you can’t win and you’re twice as likely to win your eviction case if you have representation than if you don’t,” said Executive Director of Comunity Legal Aid Society Daniel Atkins.
He says the bill would allow the Delaware Attorney General to determine what groups could help represent clients in meetings, which his organization could be included in.
Atkins says even more important than the changes in court, is the process of pre-trial mediation the bill creates to help keep disputes between landlords and tenants out of court.
“It’s going to take time to schedule the case, so while we are waiting for the case to come up for trial then it will be mediated,” he said.
This mediation would see tenants and landlords meet with a court-appointed mediator, oftentimes connecting tenants with state resources to help pay the landlord, in order to resolve the issue without the need for a final court appearance.
“A lot of these cases will be handled in mediation and a lot of them will be resolved in mediation,” Atkins said, adding, “It will help the court resolve cases short of trial, it will help landlords keep people housed and getting paid, and help tenants keep a roof over their head.”
Advocates like Atkins say while the new bill would be a much-needed change, it would still leave the record of an eviction filing on tenant’s records, even if it was dismissed or mediated, which could prevent future housing.
“It was originally a pre-filing mediation but this was a measure that was changed to get broader support which is important but this could be an area we go back and push for more change in,” Atkins said.
