Member-only story
My Recent Eviction Revealed the Realities of the Housing Market
What I learned to help you stand strong
On a bitterly cold Monday night, there’s a knock on the door. On the doormat, a white envelope waited, sharp and uninviting.
Inside was an eviction notice — no explanations, no justifications — just a terse declaration in the clumsy script of a real estate agent.
I read and reread the notice, a sense of dread creeping over me. How could this be happening?
For six years, we’d paid our rent on time, taken care of the property, and maintained a harmonious relationship with our landlord. Yet here it was, a decision as cold as the winter night.
So I write this out of sheer frustration, which I know many people have shared this year. Families, individuals, key workers, and others are all displaced by an increasingly indifferent system. Let’s name it.
“It’s not personal,” the landlord’s agent claimed when I called wanting answers.
But how could it be anything but personal?
This flat was more than just a place to live — it was my home. I had moved over 20 times in 30 years, but here I had found a sense of belonging, a place where memories were made and a life built.
