Resources for Renters, Landlords as CDC Eviction Moratorium Expires

The upcoming expiration of the eviction moratorium order mandated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is putting a renewed emphasis on the resources available to ensure those impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic are able to remain in their homes.

The moratorium is set to expire on July 31, and the CDC previously indicated that it will not extend it. While NAHB members are not required to follow the order due to a court ruling in which NAHB took part, all parties – NAHB members and non-members – must still comply with any state or local eviction moratoriums that remain in effect.

NAHB has actively advocated for emergency rental assistance to help those impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and to protect the viability and stability of the rental housing industry. The Treasury Department has dispersed more than $46 billion in rental assistance this year, with the most recent round of funding in May expediting access to relief to both landlords and tenants.

NAHB continues to urge members to seek access to this rental assistance funding through the Emergency Rental Assistance Program via your local government and state housing finance agencies before pursuing an eviction or as an alternative to starting eviction proceedings.

Find out about rental assistance programs available in your state.

Sample Script for Rental Assistance

Landlords can help connect tenants with the necessary funding to help ensure that their payments are current, especially ahead of eviction moratorium expirations. To assist in outreach, NAHB has a sample script that landlords can use to contact tenants and walk them through the steps to apply for assistance and/or request permission to apply on their behalf.

The script, and other multifamily COVID resources, can be found on the Multifamily and Affordable Housing Resources for COVID-19 page on nahb.org. You can also visit nahb.org/coronavirus for more pandemic-related tools and resources.

Administration Actions to Prevent Evictions

The Biden administration is implementing a government-wide effort to raise awareness about emergency rental assistance, including tapping multiple federal agencies to take action to inform tenants and landlords of available emergency rental assistance.

The White House is also taking the following steps to prevent evictions:

• Urge state and local courts to participate in eviction diversion efforts.
• Highlight that American Rescue Plan funds for state and local governments and emergency rental assistance can be used to fund eviction diversion plans, including counseling, navigator and legal services.
• Convene a White House summit for immediate eviction prevention plans.
• Ensure that the 30-day eviction notice requirement for federally backed properties is enforced.
• Make clear the Fair Housing Act must be followed.
• Accelerate and broaden state and local delivery of emergency rental assistance by providing clarity on bulk payments, aiding Americans experiencing homelessness, and overcoming language and disability barriers.

The Treasury Department also issued guidance to help expedite emergency rental assistance, in which it:

• Strongly encourages partnerships with courts to actively prevent evictions and develop eviction diversion programs.
• Makes clear that states and localities, in partnership with their court systems, can tap the $350 billion Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds and billions of additional dollars available for housing stability services through the Emergency Rental Assistance Program for funding their eviction diversion efforts.
• Helps families experiencing homelessness gain access to assistance.
• Drives towards equal access by removing language and cultural barriers in securing emergency rental assistance.
• Provides a streamlined payment option for utility providers and large landlords to make accessing emergency rental assistance on behalf of multiple tenants easier and more attractive.
• Pushes grantee coordination to reduce the confusion, burdens, and delays in providing assistance created by differences in locally imposed requirements among programs operating in the same regions.

The Treasury fact sheet and FAQs provide additional information.

This post provides general information and does not constitute any legal advice. NAHB encourages all members to consult their local landlord-tenant attorney prior to filing an eviction.