Eviction Moratoriums Cause Big Problems for Mom & Pop Landlords

Minority of tenants abusing moratoriums to avoid paying rent, landlord association says Mom and Pop..

admin August 29, 2020 10:44 pm

Minority of tenants abusing moratoriums to avoid paying rent, landlord association says

Mom and Pop landlords across the United States are coming under increasing pressure as a patchwork of regulations and eviction moratoriums passed by the federal government, states, counties, and municipalities in the wake of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus crisis have strongly curtailed their ability to enforce their property rights.

In addition, The Epoch Times has received reports that small numbers of tenants are abusing moratoriums by choosing to withhold payment of their rent—and in some cases without claiming coronavirus-related hardship.

Some landlords associations have resorted to legal action (pdf) to challenge the moratoriums, as many are currently unable to evict tenants breaking the terms of their lease agreement, such as those causing a nuisance to their neighbors—unless those tenants pose a danger to public health.

“Here in Illinois, landlords have been under a lot of pressure,” wrote Jane Garvey of the Chicago Creative Investors Association (CCIA) in an email to The Epoch Times. “Roughly half of the residential rental properties are owned by small Mom and Pop owners who count on the income from them to pay their own bills. This is their retirement investment and income. If their investment is lost due to inability to pay their bills, they will be in dire straits.”

“With the moratorium in place, property owners have no ability to enforce anything in their leases,” Garvey claimed. “If tenants are causing a nightmare for other residents, or neighbors, there is nothing the owner can do about it. If they are tearing up the place, same thing.”

According to a letter (pdf) from Chicagos Neighborhood Building Owners Alliance to Illinois Gov. Jay Pritzker, “Many small and medium-sized housing providers are struggling to make ends meet because of rental income lost due to their inability to remove tenants who have not been paying rent for months.”

“Without the ability to pursue an unlawful detainer, unless to protect public health and safety, some residents are creating nuisances and disturbing neighbors, and there is very little owners and managers can do,” wrote Kendra Bork, 2020 Southern California Rental Housing Association (SCRHA) President, in an email to The Epoch Times.

“Some tenants who are not impacted by COVID-19 are also choosing not to pay rent because of the regulation in place. This certainly doesnt help property owners, but it also ignores the fact that tenants will have to pay past due rent at some point,” she said.

Piecemeal Solution

“The biggest issue is the layers of regulation,” Bork told The Epoch Times. “Owners and managers in many cases are having to comply with a patchwork of eviction moratoriums from different jurisdictions, as well as court limitations statewide that essentially prohibit any kind of eviction.”

Landlords in California, for example, have had to navigate a web of state, county, and municipal regulations on the issues of property rights, evictions, and rent collection since CCP virus-related lockdowns were introduced.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order in March suspending state laws that restricted local governments ability to limit evictions. The order allowed local governments to suspend evictions when rents remained unpaid due to, e.g., substantial decreases in household or business income, or substantial medical expenses. The executive order was subsequently extended, and was due to expire on Sept. 30.

In addition, Los Angeles City, Los Angeles County, and the City and County of San Francisco adopted their own emergency and executive orders and proclamations. In Los Angeles City, landlords of residential properties cannot evict tenants who are unable to pay rent due to loss of income during the CCP virus crisis. Mayor Eric Garcettis emergency order is due to expire 12 months after his emergency declaration is terminated.

The Los Angeles City order defines and prohibits no-fault eviction, as well as evictions based on “the presence of unauthorized occupants, pets, or nuisance related to COVID-19.” The ordinance confirms that tenants are still obliged to pay the rent they owe, though they are allowed up to 12 months after the local emergency period expires to pay their arrears. Under the terms of the eviction ban, “Owners are also prohibited from charging interest or late fees on the rent owed during the emergency period.”

As early as April 8, Alameda County, Calif. extended its moratorium (pdf) on evictions to “protect tenants from all eviction notices served or unlawful detainer complaints filed … through at least December 31, 2020.”

After being sued by retiree landlords Peggy Christensen and Peter Martin, however, Californias Judicial Council reversed its April 6 emergency order last week, announcing that the moratorium would officially end at midnight on Sept. 1.

Lawsuits Filed

Eviction moratoriums have met with considerable resistance from property owners associations.

The Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA) filed a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles on June 11 on behalf of its members and the citys housing providers. The AAGLA said in a statement that the Citys prohibition of evictions “singles out landlords and property owners throughout the City to absorb the residents claimed economic losses attendant to the crisis.”

According to Jane Garvey of the CCIA, members also raised funds in June to sue the Governor of Illinois about the eviction moratorium.

The legal complaint (pdf) filed by Christensen and Martin against the California Judicial Council claimed that the Councils emergency rule ER1 violated the fundamental rights of property owners by suspending, indefinitely, their right to initiate actions against unlawful detainers. Both landlords had been rendered unable to evict non-paying tenants that were disturbing other tenants. Neither tenant had claimed any coronavirus-related hardship, according to the complaint.

“The rule creates the perverse incentive for all tenants, whether they face financial hardship or not, to refuse to pay their rent during the crisis,” according to the petition.