Key Highlights
- On same day eviction moratoriums were to expire in 30 states, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) via the Trump Administration enacted new eviction ban nationwide through the end of December 2020
- Eviction ban is most sweeping move ever enacted by CDC via Trump Administration
- Order to halt looming wave of evictions and help prevent spread of COVID-19
- National Association of REALTORS® and other housing groups oppose moratorium because order provides no funding for either renters or landlords
The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta estimates some 44M people in the US are renters. Some 45% of those renters have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, as of September 1. Those renters were facing the fact that no housing protections were in place as CARES Act eviction moratoriums expired on either July 31 or August 31, depending upon where and in what type of housing renters were living.
Download Your FREE Ultimate Agent Survival Guide Now. This is the exact ‘do this now’ info you need. Learn NOW How to Access All The Bailout Program Cash You Deserve. Including Unemployment and Mortgage Forbearance Plans. To Access the Ultimate Agent Survival Guide Now Text The Word SURVIVAL to 47372. 4 Msgs/Month. Reply STOP to cancel, HELP for help. Msg&data rates may apply. Terms & privacy: slkt.io/JWQt
Now, as of September 4, renters who have lost work/income during the pandemic and don’t have any good housing options are NOT facing eviction.
The Trump Administration has ordered a halt to ALL evictions nationwide through the end of December this year for renters who have lost work/income during the pandemic. This eviction ban is authorized and enacted via the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC).
The rationale for this new eviction ban? The CDC’s goal is to help stop the spread of the coronavirus that could be potentially inherent to an eviction surge that may have left millions left to homelessness and/or living in large congregant conditions with other family members and/or friends.
Diane Yentel, CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, said, “My reaction (to the eviction ban) is a feeling of tremendous relief. It’s a pretty extraordinary and bold and unprecedented measure that the White House is taking that will save lives and prevent tens of millions of people from losing their homes in the middle of a pandemic.”…(and) it’s long overdue.”
Renters are required to sign a statement that they either have received a federal coronavirus aid check earlier this year or do not make more than $99,000/year (or twice that if filing a joint tax return) and that if evicted, they’ve no option other than homelessness or living in large congregate situations.
Please note that this eviction ban does NOT forego rental payments by tenants during this time period…tenants will be obligated to pay any past unpaid rental amounts at the end of this eviction ban when December 31 2020 rolls around.
Though pandemic impacted renters are temporarily “saved” from falling off a financial cliff with this eviction ban, landlords are not. Particularly “small” landlords who still have to pay mortgages and utility bills regardless of having no rental income.
Doug Bibby, president of the National Multifamily Housing Council, said, “We are disappointed that the administration has chosen to enact a federal eviction moratorium without the existence of dedicated, long-term funding for rental and unemployment assistance. An eviction moratorium will ultimately harm the very people it aims to help by making it impossible for housing providers, particularly small owners, to meet their financial obligations and continue to provide shelter to their residents.”
Both Bibby and Yentel are calling on Congress to enact legislation that funds both renters and landlords. With a joint call to Congress to enact a COVID relief bill for at least $100B in emergency rental assistance, “this assistance would keep renters stably housed and small landlords able to pay their bills and maintain their properties during the pandemic.”
The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) and other housing groups oppose this moratorium because the order does not provide any funding for renters or landlords. NAR President Vince Malt said, “…this order as-written will bring chaos to our nation’s critical rental housing sector and put countless property owners out of business. Any eviction moratorium must also come with rental assistance for property owners, the vast majority of which are mom-and-pop investors and are still required to meet their financial obligations even as they cease to receive income on their properties.”
Thanks to National Public Radio, CNBC, HousingWire, InmanNews and The New York Times.
Also read: Median Home Prices Up in 96% of Metros in Q2 2020, Pending Home Sales Index Climbed +44.3% from April to May!, Home Sales Seen as Only Bright Spot in Economy
