Reminder from LISC: Time is Running Out

Time is Running Out to Prevent a Housing Catastrophe Posted by on 17 August, 2020 Thirty to 40 million people are at risk of homelessness by the end of the year, due to lost jobs and wages caused by COVID-19.  LISC, in alliance with Enterprise, Housing Partnership Network and others, has issued an urgent appeal to political leaders to get back to the bargaining table and enact renter protections and financial support for housing providers to head off this imminent crisis. _______________________________________________________________ 8.17.2020 - Press Releases Out of Time: Congress and the Administration Must Act Now to Prevent Widespread Evictions During a national health emergency, when the safest thing to do is shelter at home, our country needs more housing stability, not less. We urge Congress and the Administration to return to the negotiating table to enact meaningful renter protections, paired with financial support for housing providers. As we enter the sixth month of the pandemic, 30 to 40 million people are at risk of homelessness by the end of the year, due to lost jobs and wages caused by COVID-19. At the end of July, CARES Act eviction protections and federal unemployment benefits expired as negotiations on a new COVID-19 relief package broke down between the Administration and Congress. Many state and local eviction moratoria have also elapsed; at the same time, costs for housing providers to keep living environments safe throughout the pandemic have increased, leaving both residents and providers without protections or support. Recent data, reported by Bloomberg, shows that only 37 percent of renters were able to pay rent at class C properties in July. These tend to be the most affordable unsubsidized properties and show the incredible strain renters and owners are experiencing. The current impasse leaves millions of Americans in jeopardy of losing their homes and at increased risk of contracting the virus, while exacerbating financial strain for both renters and housing providers. In May, the House passed the HEROES Act, which would authorize a national, uniform moratorium on all evictions for nonpayment of rent during the COVID-19 crisis, provide $100 billion in emergency rental assistance, and approve further relief funds to reimburse HUD assisted housing providers for pandemic-related expenses. The Senate has not considered a corresponding bill, and negotiations among congressional leaders and the White House over a relief package appear to have stopped. The current impasse leaves millions of Americans in jeopardy of losing their homes and at increased risk of contracting the virus, while exacerbating financial strain for both renters and housing providers.  As mission-driven nonprofit organizations dedicated to providing affordable rental homes to low-income Americans, we urge Congress and the Administration to return to the bargaining table as quickly as possible to come to a bipartisan agreement to implement a national eviction moratorium for nonpayment of rent, provide emergency rental assistance to help struggling households with back and future rent, and provide financial support for all affordable housing providers to remain solvent throughout the crisis. Read more →