Unlocking Housing Access: Why Tenant Screening Protections Matter — Next City
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Unlocking Housing Access: Why Tenant Screening Protections Matter

June 11, 2025 · 44 min

Why listen

Eviction records follow people for years, and tenant screening protections may be the fix cities need.

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Unlocking Housing Access: Why Tenant Screening Protections Matter
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In this episode

  • Why eviction records block housing access long after the case is closed
  • How tenant screening tools often lack context and accuracy
  • What tenant screening protections look like in practice
  • How communities can implement these safeguards to expand stable housing

About this episode

In the U.S., approximately 3.6 million households are threatened by eviction each year, and for many, the consequences last long after the eviction itself. Even if individuals avoid losing their homes, eviction records can prevent them from securing future housing. This happens because landlords use tools that screen the rental, credit, employment, income and criminal histories of tenants—often without context or accuracy.

In this sponsored episode produced in partnership with Results for America, we discuss a proven solution: tenant screening protections. We explore how these safeguards can protect renters by ensuring fair access to housing, and we learn how communities can implement these protections to help more people secure stable homes.

Guests on this episode include Brittany Giroux Lane, Director of the Solutions Accelerator at Results for America, Marie Claire Tran-Leung, Evictions Initiative Project Director at the National Housing Law Project, and Rasheedah Phillips, Director of Housing at PolicyLink. They dive into the importance of tenant screening protections and how these initiatives can help create more equitable access to housing.
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Join Lucas Grindley, executive director at Next City, where we believe journalists have the power to amplify solutions and spread workable ideas. Each week Lucas will sit down with trailblazers to discuss urban issues that get overlooked.

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