As nonprofits, landlord and tenants fiercely advocate for an extension or solution, the federal eviction moratorium is set to expire this weekend.
When Massachusetts’ moratorium expired on Oct. 17, it was superseded by the federal ban established by the Centers for Disease Control as a public health measure. But after some legal wrangling and in the absence of action from Congress or Gov. Charlie Baker, Sunday will be open season for evictions.
When the CDC indicated there would be no more extensions, it gave landlords and tenants a deadline by which to apply for rental relief, but the chaotic, confusing and extensive process has deterred a number of would-be applicants.
The Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development has distributed more than $170 million in rental aid to nearly 30,000 households since Gov. Charlie Baker lifted the state’s eviction moratorium, according to the CHCD’s reports. More than 90 percent of applicants were rejected, the majority because the applicant failed to complete the forms; approximately 20 percent were due to ineligibility, GBH reported this week.
More people in the U.S. fell behind on rent this month, leading to an increase in the number of renters at risk of eviction, according to an analysis from Zillow. Massachusetts, however, had fewer renters at risk in July.
Zillow found that in Massachusetts:
- 127,814 renter households are currently behind on rent, 15,586 less than in June.
- It’s estimated there are 31,507 renter households currently at risk of eviction, 16,293 fewer than last month.
- Factoring in added uncertainty, Zillow projects there will be 5,003 eviction filings in Massachusetts, and 4,640 are likely to result in eviction.
While these projections suggest a large-scale evictions crisis may be avoided, the number of renters at risk, number of filings and actual evictions nationally have all increased slightly from June, Zillow concluded.
