On Tuesday, July 27, the House Select Subcommittee on Coronavirus Response held a hearing, “Oversight of Pandemic Evictions: Assessing Abuses by Corporate Landlords and Federal Efforts to Keep Americans in Their Homes.” The hearing focused on the CDC Eviction Moratorium, the federal Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP), and the issues faced by housing providers and renters during the COVID-19 pandemic.
NAR submitted a statement for the record for the hearing which focuses on the challenges faced by housing providers from the eviction moratorium, especially small “mom-and-pop” landlords who own just 1-4 rental units. These housing providers are especially vulnerable to difficulties these and other housing providers face trying to pay mortgages, taxes, insurance, and cover maintenance costs on properties that are not producing income. Mom-and-pop landlords represent more than forty-percent of the country’s 48-million total rental housing units, and serve the critical function of providing housing to those who are not in a position to purchase a home.
The statement also highlights obstacles faced by both housing providers and renters accessing the federal Emergency Rental Assistance Program, from delays in disbursement to lack of knowledge of its existence, and urged the federal government to do more to reach households and housing providers in need to avoid unnecessary eviction actions.