Commentary: The residents of San Antonio need greater access to high-quality affordable housing to be able to stay in our homes and neighborhoods.
Instead of renters being forced to pay exorbitant upfront fees or risk being kicked out of their homes and communities, they should have the option to take out a lower-cost, affordable security deposit insurance policy — such as those offered by companies like— for just a few dollars a month. How this works is simple: renters pay a small monthly premium to a security deposit insurance provider, allowing them to move in while holding onto their hard-earned cash.
When more property owners offer renters alternatives to security deposits, we can begin to put an end to the era of racist, outdated and classist housing practices and ensure that stable housing is within reach for everyone in our community. Giving renters the choice to use security deposit insurance can keep people in their homes, allow people to stay in their neighborhoods, and keep communities intact.
To this day, the words, “I can’t breathe” haunt me because we are all suffocating under outdated, racist policies designed to keep the poor and communities of color down. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., when addressing the inequities of the American housing system, famously said, “now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to open the doors of opportunity to all of God’s children.” That was in 1966. Despite all of Dr.