Fast Facts for August 3, 2021
The eviction moratorium has been narrowly and temporarily extended by the CDC until October 3rd. That gives the states 60 days to distribute the nearly $50 billion in rental assistance money already allocated in the stimulus packages. If you are one of the millions of impacted renters – there are a lot of things you need to know.
But before I get into all of that – understand — this move is controversial and will obviously be challenged in court. So don’t expect it to stick around for long. The original eviction moratorium expired over the weekend and the supreme court has already said the CDC has no jurisdiction to extend it without congressional approval. I actually detailed that in this video. Well, congress did nothing and now the Biden Administration has ignored the supreme court ruling and is moving forward with this extension anyway.
With that in the background here’s what you need to know if you are a struggling renter.
One –this eviction moratorium only applies to geographic locations in the United States that are experiencing substantial and high levels of covid 19 community transmission…as of today, that covers about 90% of US counties. You need to check with your local health department to see if your area is one. If your county is not experiencing a substantial or high level of covid19 transmission for 14 consecutive days, then your county no longer qualifies for this eviction protection.
Two – if your landlord has begun the eviction process against you but has not completed the process, this order will protect you. If you previously submitted an official CDC declaration to your landlord you will still be protected under this order. You *must* fill out one of those declarations and give it to your landlord to be covered under this temporary order. You can find that declaration document on the CDC website.
But – if your eviction was completed between August 1 to August 3 this order does *not* protect you.
Three – this, again is not rent forgiveness. This is forbearance and you will have to pay all this money back and yes – your landlord can add fees or interest to your payments. But I suggest, if you haven’t already applied, you need to go to treasury.gov and search rental assistance and find the program in your area to help you pay your landlord back.
Keep in mind — you still can be evicted for non-covid19 reasons – like criminal activity,
Eviction Moratorium Extension order from the CDC here.
