Establishing a National Housing Loss Rate

Every year, millions of Americans lose their homes through eviction, foreclosure, or other forms of displacement. Yet for decades, there has been no reliable national system for tracking these losses. In many counties, eviction data simply does not exist.

Without timely, accurate data on eviction and housing loss, policymakers and advocates have struggled to prevent housing instability before it becomes a crisis.

Through its Future of Land and Housing program, New America set out to change that. The team convened researchers, housing advocates, and public agencies to develop a “national housing loss rate”—a standardized way to measure displacement across the country.

Their work helped establish new data standards, influenced federal budget language, and spurred the development of advanced tracking tools. By building coalitions and translating research into policy action, New America made housing loss visible in ways it had never been before.

This growing infrastructure now supports smarter housing policy, earlier interventions, and stronger protections for renters and homeowners nationwide.