California Ends Eviction Moratorium

As of September 30, 2021, the eviction moratorium in California will end.

California legislators voted to extend the moratorium before it expired on June 25, but it does not appear that they will continue the protection as the Delta variant surges.

David Chu, a State Assembly member from San Francisco, reported to CalMatters that the “Delta variant and the end of many unemployment benefits make [the extension of the moratorium] even more urgent. Unfortunately, some of my colleagues feel differently, and there’s not enough consensus for that.”

On the other side of the issue, Sid Lakireddy, a board member for the California Rental Housing Association (CalRHA), told CalMatters, “I think the legislators are starting to get it… This can’t go on at infinity.” CalRHA represents more than 20,000 landlords and sued the state over the last moratorium extension.

What This Means for Californians:

• Until September 30, tenants can defend themselves in court for eviction caused by non-payment
• Tenants still have to declare COVID-19-related financial distress if they can’t pay rent because of the pandemic to avoid eviction
• Tenants can apply for governmental aid if they’re earning less than 80% of their median income because of the pandemic; this aid can help tenants pay their rent

Important Stats to Consider:

• The state has received applications for approximately $1.9 billion in assistance but has
  only distributed about $491 million to families in need
• Over 750,000 families in California are behind on rent and owe approximately $2.8
  billion put together, according to the National Equity Atlas

In response to these numbers, Francisco Dueñas, the executive director of Housing Now!, stated, “I think everybody’s hope was that more families would have received the funds by now, and that the people who didn’t apply or were denied were a minority, as opposed to the overwhelming majority.”