Biden's Eviction Moratorium: What You Need To Know

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(Photo Credit: Kim Hayes)

     With the flurry of new policies from the Biden Administration came the extension of the foreclosure and eviction moratorium, now scheduled to end in late March. Although on the surface, this seems to be a relief, this is by no means a promise of secure housing and critics warn many will fall through the cracks. The issue is postponed, not cured and the issue of back rent can only be put off so long. The distinction that must be kept in mind is that the moratorium prevents removal from property, not the process of eviction itself.  

(You can read the 13 page CDC order here.) 

Issues arise in the ambiguity of the order's language, as pointed out by NBC's Leticia Miranda and Phil McCausland:

"Renters must prove they have lost income to the pandemic, exhausted all government housing assistance, attempted to make partial payments and are likely to become homeless if evicted. But some judges have interpreted the order to mean a landlord cannot file an eviction with the court, while others have determined that a landlord can file but cannot remove the tenant. Still other judges have strictly interpreted the order, leaving little room for defense attorneys to challenge an eviction..."  NBC News

With data from 2019 already extremely out of date (the rough estimate of total homeless in the United States being around 568,000) the picture behind the edge of homelessness is blurry. 

USA Today's Romina Ruiz-Goiriena quotes Diane Yentel of the National Low Income Housing Coalition in Washington, D.C.: 

"...marginalized renters, such as lowest-income people, seniors without internet access, immigrants or others for whom English is not their first language are leaving their homes at an alarming rate." USA Today

Yentel suggests that some landlords exploit this information gap. Additionally, there has been the confusing of eviction notices with eviction orders, leading to tenants moving without going to court. 

With 200,000 evictions since the beginning of the pandemic, and thousands more after the moratorium has been in place, more action is needed, and soon. 

Click here to learn how you could make a difference!

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Kim Hayes is a senior at Portland State University, Bachelor of Science History.

You can find more of her art here: https://www.instagram.com/feedmycatplz

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