The eviction moratorium has been extended. What does that mean for our families?

2020 was an incredibly difficult year for many. Although we would have wished for normality with the new year, it sadly was not the case. The United States continues to report the highest numbers of COVID-19 cases, and California remains as the leading state with surging case numbers. Many Americans are still unemployed or furloughed with no clear sign of when they will return to work.

As we enter the second year of the pandemic, millions of renters continue to experience economic hardships while their overdue rent payments pile up. With the economy suffering, government officials have been urged to extend the Federal Eviction Moratorium that was set to end on January 31, 2020. President Biden extended the moratorium by two months while states and cities made decisions to extend their own eviction moratoriums.

In late January, Cal Matters reported that a new legislative agreement would extend the eviction moratorium until the end of June while giving incentives to landlords to forgive overdue rent utilizing $2.6 billion in federal relief.

The New York Times published an article detailing the pandemic’s toll on the existing housing crisis and even mentions Family Promise.

“Claas Ehlers, chief executive of Family Promise, a homeless-prevention nonprofit that has more than 200 affiliates in 43 states, said people without leases constituted an outsize share of the group’s requests for rental aid and assistance.”

You can find the article HERE.

At Family Promise Orange County, we work diligently to provide support to families experiencing homelessness, including rental assistance. While the extension provides temporary relief to vulnerable renters, we need to continue to advocate for nationwide rental assistance until the end of the pandemic.