The Biden administration will put in place a new eviction moratorium that would protect areas where 90% of the U.S. population lives, a turnaround after progressive lawmakers pushed the White House to do more to prevent some 3.6 million Americans from losing their homes during the COVID-19 crisis.
President Joe Biden stopped short Tuesday, August 2, 2021, of announcing the new ban on evictions during a press conference at the White House. But the new 60-day eviction moratorium would protect areas heavily impacted by the coronavirus, where about 90% of the U.S. population lives, according to three people familiar with the plans who insisted on anonymity to discuss the forthcoming announcement.
“My hope is it’s going to be a new moratorium,” Biden told reporters.
Clearly, there is an ongoing housing crisis in America, and in Philadelphia, we feel it too. Part of the crisis is that people who are renting or purchasing a home, whether they have rent to pay or a mortgage when you are out of work, and you start missing that monthly bill, and you fall behind once you get past three months in arrears, it feels like you cannot catch up. When you fall behind 12 months or more, what is one to do? In the case of the pandemic, an eviction moratorium was put in place to protect people so they wouldn’t be put out on the street, but as of last Saturday, July 31st, the moratorium was over. The good news today is that President Biden has come up with another 60 day grace period.
Last week, Black Clergy of Philadelphia and Vicinity hosted a virtual Town Hall on Rental Assistance during this crazy time for people about to lose the place they call home. The theme was “Keep Our People Housed.” Philadelphia City Councilwoman Helen Gym was the Moderator for this two-hour event, and it featured Congressman Dwight Evans, PA State Senator Sharif Street, and a couple of housing experts, one from Community Legal Services, and one from and the City of Philadelphia Division of Housing and Community Development, (DHCD).
“It’s no secret that many people in Philadelphia who are renters have had a tough time making ends meet as we got through the worst part of the pandemic in the last 18 months,” commented Rev. Robert Collier, Sr., President of the Black Clergy of Philadelphia and Vicinity. “Some people lost their jobs. Others were laid off temporarily. Some had their hours cut at work. All of that impacted people having the ability to pay their rent and other expenses. The moratorium for renters helped for a stretch of time, but now other solutions are needed to assist individuals and families still in financial crisis because of lack of work during the COVID-19 emergency. Our town hall dispensed critically needed information to help families stay in their homes and apartments.”
As I was writing my column, there were no holds on evictions or utility cut-offs in the state of Pennsylvania. In Delaware, the same thing. The moratorium was over. But before I finished writing my column, the narrative changed because President Biden called a press conference and made the announcement about an additional 60-day Moratorium.
The goal is to keep people in their homes, whether they own their home, or if it’s an apartment or house they are renting. If people know what resources are available for them, some people won’t have to become homeless.
Nearly 50% of Philadelphians are renters by choice or by need. Councilwoman Helen Gym stated, “Many of us talk about poverty. But those who live it understand what it feels like when the first of the month rolls around and the rent check is due. I’ve been here on City Council to help end poverty-based evictions in Philadelphia. And I want to show what the poorest large city in the country can do. As Rev. Collier said, as of Saturday, the Federal Moratorium that was in place expired. Philadelphia became the first city in the nation to have an Eviction Diversion program. This program mandates that before an eviction could even be filed by a landlord, first we had to seek rent assistance. Then you had to sit down with a knowledgeable housing counselor to help a landlord and tenant work out their issues. What we found out is that evictions don’t have to be the first thing that people reach for. It can be the last thing. Evictions turned out to be a matter of last resort. More than 90% of people, when they went through diversion, did not seek an eviction. They did not go and file for an eviction. Some of them resolved their issues because they found rent assistance or allowed their renters to exit their situation that was not tenable without putting an eviction filing on their record.”
Congressman Dwight Evans spoke of a program he established called “Housing is Essential.” This program calls for 62 billion dollars of additional money to help people with emergency funds for housing. Evans shared, “Just before I came to this Zoom Town Hall we had a discussion with my good friend Maxine Waters from the great state of California, who is Chair of the Financial Services Committee. We were talking about the fact that President Biden was saying he wanted to do all he could to help try and keep the Federal Moratorium in place to help people stay in their homes. There are actions that the Federal Government, the State, and the City of Philadelphia have done to try and help save people’s homes. We are learning from those actions, and we are building on them. The reality is, we didn’t create this pandemic. But yet we have to do an effective job on how we manage it. People did not ask to be in poverty. The first thing we need is for the President to agree to extend the moratorium on renters and mortgages until December of 2021. That’s the first thing. The next thing is we need HUD to come up with some new plans. We have a fantastic head of the Housing and Urban Development Department at the Federal level, former Congresswoman Marsha Fudge. She knows about housing, and she’s a part of helping to bring local, state, and federal leaders together on this issue. We must work together. The private sector must be involved, and the religious community must be involved. WE need to get labor involved. We need to get all the elements involved because it’s in everybody’s collective self-interest that there be affordable housing available to people, particularly people of color.”
Evans added, “We know all too well that African American’s, Latinos, and other people of color have been affected by this pandemic. They’ve been affected more so than anyone. We have talked to the President and the Secretary of Health about the impact the pandemic has had on African Americans and Latinos. The Congressional Black Caucus has also made that a focus, trying to figure out how we can make sure that dollars are available for our people also. Having a Marsha Fudge and a Maxine Waters, two Black women, who are very dynamic and who are not apologetic, is just what we need.”
But what can renters or people with mortgages do today or tomorrow to try and save their homes? Every Wednesday, from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m., the offices of PA State Senator Sharif Street, PA State Representative Danilo Burgos, and PA State Representative Donna Bullock are hosting Eviction and Foreclosure Prevention Outreach Clinics.
Senator Street will hold a session at his office on September 1st, October 6th, and November 3rd. His office is located at 1621 W. Jefferson Street.
State Rep. Danilo Burgos will hold his Eviction and Foreclosure Prevention Outreach sessions on August 11th, September 8th, October 13th, and November 10th. Rep. Burgos district office is located at 635 West Erie Avenue.
State Rep. Donna Bullock will hold her sessions on August 18th, September 15th, October 20th, and November 17th at 2835 W. Girard Avenue.
There is also the Save Your Home Philly Hotline. Call Monday – Friday from 9:00 a.m. -5:00 p.m. at 215-334-HOMER, (4663). If you are struggling to keep up with your mortgage payments, real estate taxes, or tangled titles, free legal help is available. The Save Your Home Philly Hotline helps any Philadelphia homeowner at risk of losing their home to mortgage or tax foreclosure. The Hotline provides advice, brief service and connects thousands of callers to housing counselors each year. They work closely with the City of Philadelphia’s Foreclosure Prevention Program and the Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program of the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia.
If you are a renter and have an eviction notice, contact Community Legal Services (CLS) as soon as possible at 215-981-3700. If you want to apply for rental assistance, log on at www.phillytenant.org/rental-assistance/.
