Metro Atlanta landlords filed roughly 144,000 eviction cases across Cobb, Clayton, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties over the past year, giving the region the highest eviction-filing rate among places tracked by Princeton University’s Eviction Lab.
FOX 5 reported Tuesday night that about 24 eviction filings were recorded for every 100 renter households in the five-county area. Researchers said the national average is roughly seven to eight filings per 100 renter households.
A filing is not the same as a completed eviction
Eviction Lab researchers emphasize an important distinction: a court filing does not automatically mean a tenant was physically removed. Cases can be dismissed, settled, paid or otherwise resolved before a lockout.
The concentration of filings is also significant. FOX 5 reported that about 15% of all metro filings came from only 100 buildings. The Reserve at Stone Creek in Stone Mountain recorded nearly 400 filings, while East Perimeter Pointe near Decatur recorded 384.
Georgia Public Broadcasting separately reported more than 142,000 filings in a 12-month Eviction Lab snapshot, an illustration of how totals can vary slightly depending on the exact reporting window.
Atlanta is testing a small emergency-loan program
The data arrives as the City of Atlanta launches a two-year pilot offering qualifying residents $500 interest-free loans intended to help cover short-term rent gaps and avoid an eviction filing.
The next question is whether filing rates begin to fall as local governments, courts and housing groups respond to the new data. Eviction Lab’s tracking system was updated in September and continues to publish monthly and weekly records.
