It is clear that the foreclosure crisis affects more than homeowners.

As landlords have defaulted on their mortgages, renters in good standing have been evicted from properties in foreclosure with little or no notice. In fact, NLIHC research shows that renters make up as many as 40% of the households facing foreclosure.

To address this problem and to stabilize neighborhoods, Congress passed and President Obama signed the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act (PTFA), Public Law 111-22 (May 20, 2009), as extended and clarified  by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, Public Law 111-203 (July 21, 2010) which went into effect on May 20, 2009. Generally, the Act requires anyone acquiring residential property through foreclosure to honor existing leases or provide tenants with a minimum 90-day notice to vacate prior to initiating an eviction action.

The attachments on this page can be used to gain a greater understanding of the PTFA itself. Renters and their advocates in search of assistance in protecting and enforcing tenants' rights under the PTFA should download the Renters in Foreclosure Toolkit from our Resource Library.

In December 2011, NLIHC partnered with the National Housing Law Project to host an online briefing on the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act. Resources related to that briefing are provided on this page. 

The following resources are available on other websites. These links will open in a new window.

 About the PTFA

Regulatory Guidance Regarding PTFA

While no federal agency is responsible for implementing  the PTFA, the federal agencies responsible for regulating financial institutions have issued guidance  advising the regulate institutions of their responsibilities under the PTFA. 

In addition, each of these agencies has a website where complaints about the activities of regulated institutions can be made. Because it is often difficult to determine the proper regulator for a bank or other financial institution the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency provides on its website a way to lookup the correct regulator for a given institution.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Federal Reserve Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)

National Credit Union Administration

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

HUD has no direct role in implementing the PTFA. However, HUD published general guidance about the application of the PTFA to their program and since the Act provides specific protections for those holding housing choice vouchers (Section 8 vouchers) HUD has published guidance for Public Housing Agencies on the PTFA. In addition HUD regional offices have offered guidance for the PHAs in their areas as well. These guidance documents are available for download above.

Neighborhood Stabilization Program 

The Neighborhood stabilization program established in 2008 to help communities address growing numbers of foreclosed and vacant properties has its own set of protections for tenants in foreclosed properties. The protections are similar to the PTFA but they are not identical.

The major difference is under the NSP program the only the former mortgagor does not receive the benefit of the protections; under PTFA neither the former mortgagor, or their spouse, children or parents can receive such protections. HUD’s guidance for tenant protections under the NSP program is located here (PDF).

For more information, please contact Elayne Weiss, Policy Analyst, at [email protected] or 202.662.1530 x243. Members of the media should contact Renee Willis, Vice President for Field and Communications, at 202.662.1530 x247 or [email protected].