PHOENIX — There were 7,579 eviction cases filed in Maricopa County last month, the third highest recorded amount for any October.
It’s also the second-highest number of filed evictions per month this year, just short of January’s 7,613 filings.
In total, Maricopa County landlords have filed nearly 71,000 eviction cases in 2025.
Scott Davis, a spokesman for the Maricopa County Justice Courts, told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Tuesday that he expects it to be a “massive” year when the full number of evictions in 2025 are determined.
“We’ve had such high numbers this entire year that we’re probably going to end up this year with our second highest number of eviction filings ever,” Davis said.
The past two years had a record amount of eviction cases, with 2024 currently holding the title for most evictions at 87,130 filings.
The Moon Valley Court precinct in north Phoenix had the most October filings at 458. In fact, the court has the highest number of eviction cases for 2025 so far with 4,268 filings.
The Country Meadow, Manistee, Kyrene and Maryvale courts are the other Valley precincts with the largest amount of eviction filings this year.
Roughly a third of evictions that are filed with Maricopa County Justice Courts are dismissed. Afterwards those cases are sealed, often because the tenant pays back any overdue rent before the case is decided by a judge.
Worries eviction cases this year could be record-setting
While Davis says 2025 will likely be the second-highest year in Maricopa County for filed evictions, he is worried that instability in the SNAP food assistance program and increasing government healthcare costs could lead to an upturn.
“That is a definite concern,” Davis said. “We just don’t know how people are going to be affected this year by the economic changes that are happening. It might be different and we might have higher November and December filings.”
Typically, the last two months of the year see a drop in eviction filings compared to the months before but that trend could be upended.
“(Those) could potentially push us over the edge and we have the highest year ever,” Davis said. “But we just have to look at what we know right now.”
Tenants must pay to win
Eviction cases can start five days after notice is given and typically the tenant’s only defense is to pay the previously owed rent.
“The unfortunate thing is when tenants don’t pay their rent, for whatever reason, they’re going to end up owing more to the landlord than just the rent,” Davis said.
For a tenant losing an eviction case, it can also mean paying a landlord’s attorney fees and other costs on top of the missing rent. On average, a tenant must pay around a $3,000 judgement when their case ends.
Davis recommends renters who may not be able to pay talk with their landlords and come up with a payment plan before the eviction process starts.
“It’s just a disheartening number that so many people are having this trouble paying their rent,” Davis said.
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