NEW YORK (AP) – Most Americans who rent their homes, many of whom have lost their jobs in the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, will not enjoy protection against eviction, despite what the week said on Monday. President Donald Trump.
Under the Department of Housing (HUD) plan released Wednesday, evictions and foreclosures would be suspended for 60 days for single-family homes with loans obtained through the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). That would apply to about 8 million units, according to the Department. Only FHA homes that have been inhabited for at least one year can be rented to others.
RELATED
That’s a small portion of the roughly 43 million homes rented in 2019, according to the Census Bureau. Half of tenants rent from an individual investor, while the other half rent from a business or multi-property owner. Those who rent from businesses will not receive protection, according to the proposal.
″ That is the problem with the proposal. It only has an impact on a very small number of people. We need large-scale solutions, ”said Andrea Shapiro of the Metropolitan Housing Council, an activism group based in New York.
Additionally, the Department of Housing has no authority to protect tenants in buildings from local housing authorities across the country. Housing Secretary Ben Carson said this week that the agency is working with Congress to receive the authority to protect those tenants.
“HUD has been in contact with every public housing agency in the country to ensure that the millions of low-income Americans we serve continue to have a roof over their heads,” said Carson.
The rules contrast with comments made by Trump this week, when he said tenants would receive “immediate help” as part of his government’s plan.
Housing activists said the White House proposal was an important first step, but stressed that the policy has limits that must be resolved.
“Low-income tenants in the United States were already having jobs to pay their rents and earn a living before this latest disaster, and people are suffering from homelessness. Congress must implement a national moratorium on evictions and foreclosures, ”said Diane Yentel, president of the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
