The pandemic has certainly been a rough time for people when it comes to job security. Since COVID-19 broke out in the United States, about 9.6 million Americans have lost their jobs due to the pandemic. 

With so many people losing their jobs in what is a difficult time for the world, it has made some people uncertain of where they are going to get the money to pay their bills such as rent. 

If you cannot pay your rent, there is a natural fear that you will be served with a residential eviction. So, what has the US government done to try to provide emergency eviction assistance? 

Here is an overview of some of the policies that have been put in place to try to minimize the number of people evicted. 

CDC Eviction Ban 

At the beginning of the pandemic, the CDC effectively put a ban on landlords evicting certain tenants that qualified to be protected. 

How could you get protected? You qualify by making $99,000 or less and showing proof that you lost a significant amount of income due to the pandemic. Or, show proof that you lost a significant amount of your normal working hours. 

However, this came to an end on August 26, 2021. The Supreme Court voted not to extend the eviction ban because it was ruled unconstitutional.

Several landlord groups contested that it was such for several months. They even wanted to sue the CDC for not allowing them to evict people who could not pay their rent. 

But, the ban was not unwarranted, because millions of renters reported being at risk of homelessness. It was reported that as many as 15 million people owed about $20 billion in combined rent because of layoffs caused by the pandemic. 

About eight million people reported being behind on their rent. Another 3.5 million people reported fearing eviction. This is because of the fact that they were falling behind on their bills. 

Since the ban has now been ruled unconstitutional, there are question marks about what happens to people who still cannot pay their rent. 

Current Florida Eviction Laws 

So, some of you in the state of Florida may be wondering how your state is affected by the new laws? Well, as of right now, Florida does not have any type of hold on evictions or utility shutoffs.

That means that landlords have the authority to shut off your utilities and evict you but they still need a court order to do the latter. 

One option for renters in the state is to apply for the Emergency Rental Assistance program before they reach the point of eviction. Certain people may be able to qualify if they already have a rental agreement in place, can prove that you have housing instability, and can prove that you lost a significant amount of income due to the pandemic. 

However, in order for that to work, your landlord would have to agree to participate in the program. If the landlord gets a court order that the sheriff then provides written notice for to you, you would then have 24 hours to leave the premises before you are forcibly removed from your apartment. 

For those that own homes and are struggling to keep up with mortgage payments in Florida, the state has also created a Mortgage Relief Assistance program for those that have been financially affected by the pandemic after January 31, 2020. 

In normal times, the landlord has to give a tenant three days’ notice to pay their rent. They have to give seven days’ notice to correct another violation of the lease that can be easily fixed. And, they have to give seven days’ notice to a tenant that they want out of the apartment under any circumstances. 

What Does This Mean? 

With the CDC eviction ban being ruled unconstitutional, it is unlikely that there will be future laws that will be put in place to ban evictions. Since landlords had to deal with tenants that were struggling to pay their bills during the pandemic, it may be possible that there will be more lengthy verification put in place when it comes to determining if a tenant will be able to pay their bills. 

An example of this is a tenant having to show a pay stub as proof of income and a copy of their credit report to their landlord. More landlords may start requesting this. Or, they might raise their standards here to try to avoid tenants that might not be able to pay their bills. 

However, with Florida currently having an Emergency Rental Assistance program, it is possible that there may be a bigger push to have landlords and tenants participate in that in the future. This can especially be the case if the landlord is rewarded with benefits or tax credit for participating in said program. 

The rest may depend on simplifying the process for rental assistance. Currently, it can take about 20 days to get any assistance and in a legal battle, the landlord has an advantage. This report revealed that about 90% of landlords have a lawyer for an eviction case. That percentage drops significantly for tenants. 

Know Your Residential Eviction Rights

Some Americans have had a rough time since the pandemic and more and more are facing the possibility of residential eviction. With the end of the CDC eviction ban, more landlords can feel justified in demanding payment for what tenants owe them. 

Are you a Florida landlord that has tenants that cannot pay their bills because of the pandemic? If so, contact us for legal counsel today to know your rights. 

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