A shortage of places to live is one reason Generation Z has grown cool on Chicago

There’s a reason, besides the weather, Generation Z would rather live in “cool” cities like Austin, New York, Boston or San Francisco.

Chicago, and Illinois, just aren’t in tune with their needs, especially when it comes to housing.

Consider the city’s lack of foresight when it comes to anticipating what will happen when the federal moratorium on rental evictions ends on July 25. This order, which says landlords with federally backed loans can’t evict tenants, covered about 70% of rentals in the country. State bans, like the one we have in Illinois that is set to expire July 31, likely have protected the other 30%.

Of course, some tenants are still paying their rent. But many can’t. According to Apartment List, 32% of people missed their July payments (both rent and mortgages).

Most experts, ourselves included, predict there will be an avalanche of eviction lawsuits when these moratoriums expire. Many mayors in progressive cities, like Boston, Philadelphia, Denver and Los Angeles, have protected their residents by issuing city-wide eviction moratoriums. Boston’s mayor signed an order last week that halts evictions until the year’s end.

We call on Mayor Lightfoot to issue a citywide eviction moratorium for Chicago.

We also call on the city to provide more support to tenant relief organizations. One study found that 90% of landlords have a lawyer, while only 10% of tenants do. When tenants have legal help, they win 75% to 90% of eviction disputes.

Whatever lawmakers decide to do, we hope renters in Chicago find affordable legal services to help them with landlord disputes. Having a lawyer in your phone’s contact list is just as important as having a doctor to call when you are sick. Eventually, you’ll need one.