Eviction Prevention and Diversion Programs: Early Lessons from the Pandemic

This brief describes the diversity of court-based and court-adjacent state and local eviction prevention and diversion programs that have been created or adapted to prevent evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted a national scan in which we reviewed 47 eviction prevention and diversion programs to identify broad trends and key features. We then conducted interviews with program administrators and stakeholders involved in four of the programs to understand program design, principal components and changes over time, the ways they addressed racial and economic equity, challenges and unmet needs, and outcome tracking. From both the national scan and interviews, we identified lessons for policymakers, administrators, and advocates to help design and support effective and equitable eviction diversion programs during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.