Rising rents and struggle for affordable housing 

Due to lax tenant protection laws, Florida is one of the most investor-friendly states. Lynne Mitchell visited the Jacksonville Housing Authority on Tuesday morning in need of assistance. She stated that her rent has increased by $400 in the last few years and that she will soon be facing eviction because the cost of her long-term apartment is too high for her to keep up with.

A University of North Florida study found that Duval County is the state's capital of eviction filings, and corporations are behind the majority of eviction filings in the Jacksonville area.

Sadly, Mitchell's tale is not exceptional. According to new research by the JAX Rental Housing Project, 72% of Duval County's multifamily properties, or apartment complexes, are owned by real estate and investment companies frequently located outside the state. This represents a "corporate invasion" of the county. This contributes to an increase in rent and a high volume of eviction requests. It also makes people need assistance more frequently.

The corporate takeover of Duval country's rental market

At the Jacksonville Area Legal Aid office, housing attorney James Tyer noted that his office has been full since before 2020. Tyler reported that while there isn't much they can do, he has noticed a steady rise in the number of people in need of assistance with evictions. "It appears that individuals' earnings haven't really kept up with the increasing rental costs in the city," he remarked. "And so, there's not really much that people can do when they fall behind on their rent because people can't afford rent a lot of the time."

Limited Tenant Protections

Tenant rights in Florida were severely damaged by a preemption statute that took effect in 2023. State law restricts local laws pertaining to source-of-income ordinances and rent control. The Sunshine State is a great environment for landlords to operate since local regulations controlling tenant-landlord interactions are illegal. What then occurs when businesses operate apartment buildings with minimal state supervision and the intention of making a profit? Regular maintenance is frequently neglected.

"I believe that these bigger businesses frequently aim to increase the efficiency of their operations. And that essentially translates into cost reduction on a big scale," Tyler added. According to the UNF study, local media is the first resource that tenants in Jacksonville go to when their living conditions worsen.