Metro Atlanta has recorded about 144,000 eviction filings in 2025, giving it the highest filing rate among the areas tracked by Princeton University’s Eviction Lab and placing the region ahead of New York City.
The figures cover Cobb, Clayton, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties, where one in four renter households faced an eviction filing. The rate is roughly three times the average across the locations monitored by the research group.
The data covers 572,679 renter households, with average monthly rent estimated at $1,739. Although filings in Atlanta were about 4 per cent lower than the area’s recent average, the total remained exceptionally high, with researchers recording 144,000 cases during the year.
Eviction filings concentrated in small number of buildings
Most landlords rarely take tenants to court, but the Eviction Lab found that a relatively small group of property owners accounted for a significant share of the cases. About 15 per cent of all filings — 22,711 cases — came from the 100 buildings with the highest numbers of filings.
Among the properties highlighted in the data were the Reserve at Stone Creek in Stone Mountain, which had nearly 400 filings, and East Perimeter Pointe near Decatur, where 384 cases were recorded.
Researchers stressed that an eviction filing does not necessarily mean a tenant was physically removed. Some cases are resolved in court, while others end when renters pay what they owe, reach an agreement with their landlord or find alternative accommodation.
Under Georgia law, landlords can begin the process after giving tenants at least three days’ notice. Filing a case costs between $54 and $75, a relatively modest expense compared with the financial and legal consequences faced by renters.
Atlanta launches microloan scheme
Rising rents, stagnant incomes and a shortage of affordable homes have been identified as key pressures behind the region’s housing instability. Researchers have also noted that an eviction filing can make it harder for tenants to secure another home, even if the case does not result in removal.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens has responded with a two-year pilot offering eligible residents interest-free, fee-free $500 rent loans when they anticipate a short-term financial setback. The scheme is being administered by the non-profit Flagstone Initiative and does not require collateral, a credit check or credit reporting.
Recipients repay the money at $20 a week over 25 weeks. The city has committed $50,000 to the pilot, with additional support from private and charitable donors.
The programme is intended to help households avoid missing a rent payment before a dispute reaches court, but the scale of the latest figures underlines the wider challenge facing tenants across metro Atlanta.
