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The federal agency that oversees two of the biggest guarantors of mortgages in the U.S. market announced that it is extending moratoriums on foreclosures and evictions on foreclosed single-family houses and condominiums with loans backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

The current moratoriums were set to expire on March 31, but now won’t end until June 30. They were put in place at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to prevent a wave of homelessness as millions lost their jobs, and were extended on a month-by-month basis ever since.

FHFA also announced that borrowers with a mortgage backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac may be eligible for an additional three-month extension of COVID-19 forbearance. This additional three-month extension allows borrowers to be in forbearance for up to 18 months. Eligibility for the extension is limited to borrowers who are in a COVID-19 forbearance plan as of February 28, 2021, and other limits may apply.  Further, COVID-19 Payment Deferral for borrowers with an Enterprise-backed mortgage can now cover up to 18 months of missed payments. COVID-19 Payment Deferral allows borrowers to repay their missed payments at the time the home is sold, refinanced, or at mortgage maturity.

“Borrowers and the housing finance market alike can benefit during the pandemic from the consistent treatment of mortgages regardless of who owns or backs them. From the start of the pandemic, FHFA has worked to keep families safe and in their home, while ensuring the mortgage market functions as efficiently as possible. Today’s extensions of the COVID-19 forbearance period to 18 months and foreclosure and eviction moratoriums through the end of June will help align mortgage policies across the federal government,” FHFA Director Mark Calabria said in a statement.