Hayward, California: Helping Obtain Court Eviction Data for the First Time

Partnered with: Housing Division department in the City of Hayward, California on the development of FEAT.

Prior to the start of the COVID pandemic and amidst skyrocketing rents, housing leaders in Hayward, California did not have access to court eviction records. This is in large part because a statewide record sealing law shields most eviction court records from public view. As a stop-gap measure, a recently-adopted ordinance requiring landlords to submit notices to terminate a tenancy or increase rent provided Hayward housing leaders with data on which landlords were planning to file for eviction. But housing leaders needed to first understand whether landlords were complying with the ordinance before knowing whether this data on notices to terminate tenancies was comprehensive.

“We needed [eviction] data to demonstrate there was a pervasive problem that needed a legislative response.” – Christina Morales, City of Hayward

After partnering on FEAT, the City of Hayward leveraged the development and testing of the tool to approach the Alameda County Court to broker a data sharing compromise. Establishing a contact at the court allowed the city to identify and access court eviction data not restricted by statewide record sealing laws, marking the first time the city was able to access eviction records. And even though the records are not as granular as eviction data from other parts of the country (they are reported at the zip code level), the data still provides insights into the magnitude of evictions in Hayward.

This data allows housing leaders to compare court evictions against the notices to terminate tenancy data generated through the ordinance to assess landlord compliance and begin to identify if City interventions are helping to prevent housing instability and displacement of Hayward residents.