What are your biggest ideas on how to solve the housing crisis? How has housing impacted/shaped your life?

Throughout this season, we wanted to hear from you – the SOLD OUT audience. We asked you to get in touch, and you came through! Through voice memos, email and social media, dozens of listeners reached out and shared stories of housing insecurity and loss, advocacy work, and visions for an equitable housing future. 

In this bonus episode, we hear from seven people for whom housing is at the center of everything. 

Still want to contact the show? Email us at housing@kqed.org

The number one reason people are evicted is falling behind on rent. So how do you keep that from happening in the first place? 

In the final chapter in our series on evictions, we look at Section 8; the promise, the problems, and the history. And the push for guaranteed income – because if the rent is out of reach, maybe the solution is to help pay it.

Read the episode transcript here.

Step into an eviction court and you’ll likely see it: most landlords have attorneys while tenants do not. Eviction cases move quickly, and representation can be the thing that balances the scale — making it easier for people to understand their rights and to navigate the complex system. 

From New York to California’s Central Valley, tenants are fed up and demanding the right to counsel. It’s a movement that has gained more attention in the wake of the pandemic, and in the face of rising rents. Today, we go to court.

Read the episode transcript here.

The decision to evict someone can affect them and their ability to find stable housing for years. It’s a decision that gives landlords a lot of power. 

We explore when and why landlords decide to evict. And look at the shift in property owners in recent years, from small “mom and pop” owners, towards more investors and corporations, and what that means for tenants and our housing system.

Read the episode transcript here.

Evictions do not affect everyone equally. Millions of renters in this country have struggled to make rent after losing income during the pandemic. And Black renters, particularly Black women, are more likely to be evicted than white renters.

Jean Kendrick and her son were evicted during the early days of the pandemic. We follow their journey to find affordable housing, while examining what’s driving these disparities in evictions – including generations of racist housing policies and predatory home lending practices.

Read the transcript here.

The place with the highest eviction rate in the Bay Area during the pandemic wasn't a big city like Oakland or San Francisco — instead it was a suburb that has been radically transformed by housing crisis after housing crisis. Antioch, a city on the outskirts of the Bay has been a destination for people looking for affordable housing. But now it’s at the center of a growing eviction crisis.

In the first episode of our second season, we visit a neighborhood in Antioch where it seems everyone you meet has an eviction story.

Read the transcript here.

During the pandemic, a safe home has been more important than ever. At the same time, millions of people have found themselves on the edge of eviction. Thanks to eviction moratoriums and billions of dollars in rent relief, the feared waves of evictions never arrived. But those efforts were only temporary, a bandaid on our affordability crisis. And the low income people who have suffered the most during the pandemic could face eviction once again. 

In the second season of SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in America, we’re taking a deep look into evictions — how they happen, who they impact, and possible solutions to a system deeply entwined in our country’s discriminatory housing policies. 

The first episode of the season comes out on Monday, February 14, 2022.

The pandemic brought millions of people to the edge of losing their housing. And it sparked a national conversation about the connection between housing and health, and the lasting impacts of evictions.

In advance of a new season of SOLD OUT, which will focus on the system of evictions, the team held a live event at KQED’s San Francisco headquarters with Tim Thomas, of the Urban Displacement Project at UC Berkeley, Anne Tamiko Omura, from the Eviction Defense Center, and Krista Gulbransen of Berkeley Rental Housing Coalition.

Listen to the live recording for a conversation about evictions, the pandemic, and some possible solutions.

Got a story you want to share with the SOLD OUT team? Email us or send us a voice memo to housing@kqed.org. Or leave us a voicemail at 415-553-3308.

Every year, at least 3.7 million evictions are filed in the United States. And during the pandemic, millions more renters suddenly found themselves on the precipice of eviction — prompting unprecedented tenant protections and nearly $50 billion in rental assistance.

SOLD OUT is coming back in February of 2022, with a five-part series that’s all about evictions. But before that, hosts Erin Baldassari and Molly Solomon are hosting a live event discussing evictions, rental assistance and what the pandemic revealed about our housing crisis. They will be joined by Tim Thomas, (Urban Displacement Project), Anne Tamiko Omura (Eviction Defense Center), and Krista Gulbransen (Berkeley Rental Housing Coalition).

Join us for the free event in San Francisco on November 13 at 4pm PDT. Catch the livestream on KQED’s YouTube, or keep an eye out on our podcast feed — you’ll be able to hear the event right here.

Got your own housing story to tell? We’ll have a producer on-site to help you record your story. Or you can call us at 415-553-3308 and leave us a voice message.

RSVP and find out more about the November 13 event here: https://bit.ly/3jgHL8Q

A LOT has happened since we brought you SOLD OUT, our five-part series which dove into solutions to the country's growing housing affordability crisis. We received tons of comments and questions from listeners, so we decided to sit down and answer some of them, and bring you an update episode.

Got a question for us? Get in touch on Twitter at @e_baldi or @solomonout. You can also email us at msolomon@kqed.org or ebaldassari@kqed.org.

Episode transcript here.