What to Expect for Evictions in 2021?
The New Year will bring a wave of residential evictions and foreclosures unless new legal protections are created. Temporary legal protections for delinquent homeowners and renters have held off the worst of the current financial crisis. However, most of those protections will expire at the end of 2020. Many housing advocates expect the federal government to renew or create housing protections in 2021. However, nothing is guaranteed. Homeowners and renters who are behind on payments can hope for the best but should prepare for the worst.
Eviction Protections: Which Ones Remain?
Landlords must go through a court process known as “eviction” to lawfully remove renters from a rental property. You can read more about the Arkansas eviction procedures at www.arlegalservices.org. In every case, a renter should get an opportunity to tell their side of the story before the Court orders the renter to leave the home. A landlord cannot remove a renter by changing the locks, shutting off utilities, or other similar actions without a court order. Although the purpose of this post is to describe what is happening with new COVID-related eviction laws, a renter could have a defense to eviction under other laws. Renters can call the Center for Arkansas Legal Services at 501-376-3423 (or toll-free at 1-800-950-5817) to apply for free legal help.
Eviction Protections: Moving Forward.
It will be interesting to see how people use the new 30-day notice requirement under the CARES Act in eviction cases. Many people believe that the CARES Act expired in July 2020, when in fact many of the law’s important eviction and foreclosure protections are still in place. In some cases, an Arkansas landlord can file an eviction case if the tenant remains in the home for as little as three days after getting a notice to vacate. Now, federal law requires at least thirty days' notice for federally funded properties (28.1% - 45.6% of all occupied rental housing in the U.S.). Most renters and many homeowners will not know if their home is federally funded. You can search for your address in this database created by the National Low-Income Housing Coalition to tell if it is covered. However, this only includes properties with 5 or more units. Smaller properties require more investigation. Mortgage servicers should be able to tell landlords if a property is covered. However, renters may have to research property records or get a lawyer to know if their home is covered.
Renters who are behind on rent can still use the “CDC Declaration” to prevent eviction for nonpayment of rent until at least December 31, 2020. However, they need to read the document carefully to make sure that it applies to them before they sign it. They can call their local legal aid program if they have questions about the law or how it applies to them. They also need to try and get “rental assistance” or money to get caught up on their rent. The Arkansas Fresh Start program still has funds available in some counties. Renters should also contact their local community action agency to see if they have other funding available or can refer them to other nonprofits or faith-based groups who may be able to help. Even if there is no rental assistance available, the renter might qualify for SNAP, food from food pantries, utility assistance, student loan forbearance, and other benefits to free up the renter’s other income for rent. We have a sample repayment agreement here if the landlord and tenant are able to work out a payment plan.
Whatever renters choose to do, they must do something. If you are served with a lawsuit and you do nothing, you will almost certainly lose. We are seeing an unsettling number of Arkansas families getting evicted because they think there are no evictions during COVID-19 so they are not taking the right steps to protect themselves. Free legal help is available from the Center for Arkansas Legal Services, Legal Aid of Arkansas, and some pro bono attorneys.