HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH) posted a flyer “Addressing Tenant Concerns Regarding Rent and the Temporary Suspension of Evictions for Nonpayment of Rent” on April 28. The flyer informs residents that evictions for nonpayment of rent and charges/fees for nonpayment of rent have been temporarily suspended. The suspension applies to all public housing and voucher households from March 27 through July 24.
In the April 21 FAQs regarding the eviction moratorium (see Memo, 4/27) and in the April 22 updated overall FAQs (see Memo, 4/27), PIH identifies July 24 as the end date for the suspension of evictions and fees. Elsewhere, HUD’s Office of Multifamily Housing Programs uses the end date of July 25 (see Memo, 4/27).
The flyer informs public housing and voucher households that if they lose a job or have a significant loss of income, they should request an interim income reexamination with the public housing agency (PHA) as soon as possible. A household’s rent can be adjusted to reflect a change in income, or the household may be eligible for a financial hardship exemption. For voucher households, PIH urges households to contact their landlords immediately to discuss payment plans. A voucher household’s rent adjustment may be retroactive.
The flyer informs residents that a landlord or PHA cannot charge or accrue late fees, and assistance cannot be terminated for non-payment of rent in April, May, June, and July 2020. If a household is behind on rent after the moratorium expires, voucher households will need to negotiate with landlords to determine requirements to repay back rent. Public housing households should work with their PHA to pay back rent in a lump sum or set up a repayment agreement.
The CARES Act protects tenants from eviction for not paying rent and other charges/fees for 120 days if they live in certain properties, including Section 8 project-based housing, Section 202 Housing for the Elderly, Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities, Section 236 multifamily rental housing, Section 221(d)(3) Below Market Interest Rate (BMIR) housing, and properties with FHA-insured mortgages (see Memo, 4/13).
The PIH flyer is at: https://bit.ly/2z1Nkni
More about the public housing program is on page 4-30 of NLIHC’s 2020 Advocates’ Guide.
More about the Housing Choice Voucher program is on page 4-1 of NLIHC’s 2020 Advocates’ Guide.