Will Massachusetts do enough to limit evictions?
Advocates for tenants say the distribution of the money has been slow and more time is needed to distribute it and repay landlords.
BOSTON (AP) — A federal freeze on most evictions enacted last year is scheduled to expire July 31, after the Biden administration extended the date by a month.
The moratorium, put in place by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in September, was the only tool keeping millions of tenants in their homes. Many of them lost jobs during the coronavirus pandemic and had fallen months behind on their rent.
Landlords successfully challenged the order in court, arguing they also had bills to pay. They pointed out that tenants could access more than $45 billion in federal money set aside to help pay rents and related expenses.
Advocates for tenants say the distribution of the money has been slow and that more time is needed to distribute it and repay landlords. Without an extension, they feared a spike in evictions and lawsuits seeking to boot out tenants who are behind on their rents.
As of June 7, roughly 3.2 million people in the United States said they face eviction in the next two months, according to the US Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey. The survey measures the social and economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic every two weeks through online responses from a representative sample of US households.
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Here’s the situation in Massachusetts:
What is the status of the eviction moratoriums in the state?
Massachusetts is one of several states that enacted a moratorium last year halting eviction proceedings due to the pandemic. The state’s pause on evictions expired on Oct. 17, 2020, at which point the CDC moratorium became effective in Massachusetts. A bill Governor Charlie Baker signed into law earlier this month also aims to help prevent evictions in cases where tenants are unable to pay rent due to COVID-19-related financial hardship until April 2022.
What is being done to help people facing eviction?
When the state moratorium on evictions and foreclosures expired, Baker outlined a $171 million plan to increase rental assistance and help landlords negotiate with tenants. While much of that money has been spent, an additional nearly $440 million in federal money was set aside in December for rental assistance in Massachusetts, and more was expected through the American Rescue Plan Act. Much of the federal aid remains.
The new law Baker signed this month also includes provisions aimed at helping tenants facing possible eviction understand their legal options. The law requires that landlords notifying tenants to leave a dwelling for nonpayment of rent also provide a form explaining that the notice is not the same as an eviction and that tenants don’t immediately have to leave the unit.
How are the courts handling eviction hearings?
The same law Baker signed also includes protections for tenants in court. The law continues hardship protections to those facing eviction by continuing the court practice of offering temporary continuances to tenants who have filed applications for rental assistance. The law also requires that the form landlords must give to tenants when they notify them to leave because of nonpayment of rent must also include information on rental assistance programs, trial court rules, and relevant federal or state legal restrictions on residential evictions.
How affordable is housing in the state’s major rental markets?
Massachusetts has long had one of the country’s tightest rental housing markets, driven in part by a strong economy and a shortage of affordable housing, although the pandemic put a dent in rising rents at a time when vast numbers of college students stayed home to take classes remotely. As of May, the median monthly rent in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton area had fallen 3.8 percent over the last year to $2,400, according to a report released June 16 by Realtor.com. The median rent for a two-bedroom apartment was $2,650. The report found that Boston was just one of two metro areas — along with Seattle — where rents need another 5 percent to 6 percent to reach the previous peaks.
Are evictions expected to create a surge in homelessness?
It isn’t clear how much homelessness will increase in Massachusetts. One indication of the scope of the problem is census data showing 17,387 state residents are concerned that they could very likely be evicted over the next two months. Another 38,032 say they are somewhat likely to be evicted over the next two months.
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