Hundreds of data-mining companies sell landlords tenant-screening reports that list past evictions and court filings.

The profits were staggering. In 1966, a Chicago landlord told a court that on a single property he had made $42,500 in rent but paid only $2,400 in maintenance. When accused of making excessive profits, the landlord simply replied, “That’s why I bought the building.

I don't think we can fix poverty without fixing housing, and I don't think we can address housing without understanding landlords.

Just strictly from a business standpoint, kids are a liability to landlords, and they actually provoke evictions.

Since evictions go through court, it has a record that comes with it, and many landlords that I spend time with use that as a big screening mechanism. And that's really the reason, we think, families are pushed into worse housing and worse neighborhoods after their evictions.

The cost of evictions varies a lot, but it could be for landlords an expensive process as well. Among the costs for landlords as well is the emotional costs of an eviction.