Many renters to get help when California eviction protections end this week
Some California eviction protections expire this week, but low-income tenants who are behind on their rent can continue to hold on to their housing by applying for a state rent relief program, officials said Monday.
State law adopted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic protects low-income tenants from eviction if they pay at least 25% of their rent, but that safeguard is set to end Thursday. Still, state officials note that a program that pays 100% of back and future rent for low-income tenants will continue accepting applications after Thursday until it doles out all of the $5.2 billion available from the federal government.
The state tenant law approved this year also blocks landlords through March 31, 2022 from getting a court order for eviction in cases in which tenants have completed a rental assistance application.
“We urge anyone who owes back rent or who will have problems paying upcoming rent to apply as soon as possible, but no one should fear that the rent relief program is going away any time soon,” said Gustavo Velasquez, director of the state Department of Housing and Community Development.
The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in state health orders that forced many businesses to temporarily close or scale back operations, costing millions of Californians income they needed to pay their rent.
In response, the state Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom approved protections against evictions through Sept. 30.
The state is distributing more than half of the federal funds, and the rest are being handed out by counties.
The state has paid out $650 million of its share as of Monday, providing rent relief to 55,000 households, according to Lourdes M. Castro Ramírez, secretary of the state Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency.
State officials have faced criticism for being slow in rolling out the program. Officials said they will continue taking applications and paying rent owed by tenants in danger of being evicted until all of the available funds are distributed.
“Applying for rental assistance is the best way to protect yourself from being evicted,” Castro Ramírez said during a news conference Monday at Shelter Inc., an organization in Concord, Calif., that helps families avoid and escape homelessness.
Advocates for tenants say many fear eviction if they are unable to get help.
Some 744,000 California households still owed an average of $3,500 in back rent in August, according to an analysis by Policylink and the USC Equity Research Institute.
United Way Bay Area, which is involved in the rent relief program, said 56% of the households in the region surveyed by the U.S. Census Bureau face potential eviction, with a large majority of Latino households saying they are “somewhat” to “very likely” to face eviction in the next two months.