There’s good news for U.S. residents who have fallen behind on their rent or mortgage payments because of the coronavirus pandemic: the U.S. has ordered a ban on evictions through December.
It was announced Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control, the order — which applies to all residents whose income has been affected by the pandemic — has received mixed reaction. Diane Yentel, CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, says the move was long overdue. “My reaction is a feeling of tremendous relief,” Yentel says. “It’s a pretty extraordinary and bold and unprecedented measure that the White House is taking that will save lives and prevent tens of millions of people from losing their homes in the middle of a pandemic.”
However, the president of the National Multifamily Housing Council doesn’t share Yentel’s enthusiasm. Doug Bibby says the order, which doesn’t provide a method for landlords to recover unpaid rent, will leave property owners in a lurch. “We are disappointed that the administration has chosen to enact a federal eviction moratorium without the existence of dedicated, long-term funding for rental and unemployment assistance,” he says.
Do you think this move was necessary? Instead of excusing tenants from paying rent, should the government pay it for them?