How to navigate and survive the affordable housing crisis during this pandemic
From paying rent, mortgages, utilities, keeping business alive or finding shelter, it’s important for people to know where they can go to get support, now more than ever. Here is a guide for helping you prepare – now that the affordable housing crisis is situated within a global pandemic.
Lane County Health and Human Services Public Information Officer, Jason Davis, responded to questions about remedies for renters who experience job loss as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak; and landlords who depend on those tenants for income. The answer has several different stages.
Davis recommends applying for “every program you can get information on. Sometimes the application process can seem daunting but it’s worth it in the long run.” Getting this process started as soon as possible will be key to being able to make ends meet in the short term.
Statewide Programs
First and foremost, unemployment insurance in Oregon has expanded as a result of the Covid-19 virus and criteria for meeting requirements to receive unemployment insurance has been widened. “If you have lost your job as a result of the Covid-19 virus, special considerations are being made.”
Turnaround time for applications for UI in the months before the crisis was around four weeks, but that process is speeding up — even though the demand of applicants increased from an average of 800 applicants per week to 18,500 last week.
The second stage is to evaluate how to expand current resources. “Food is obviously an issue right now for a lot of people,” Davis said. “The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program provides benefits through the Oregon Department of Human Services office is a great addition to expand your budget.”
Although eligibility requirements for receiving benefits from these two state level programs is typically stringent, those requirements are loosened during times of crisis: currently the case. The applications take some time and require speaking with a representative over the phone, but it could be time well spent.
Lane County Resources
Third, affected residents can consider augmenting current resources by using food programs beyond SNAP. Lane County is working with local nonprofit Food for Lane County to provide food for people short on funding or needing to augment their budget by getting free food. Landlords who depend on receiving monthly rent for income are welcome to stand in line alongside their tenants who may be short on cash.
Fourth, utility bill forgiveness will be offered through Lane County Human Services; a link to those services will be provided once the county’s website is up and running, according to Davis.
Eugene Water and Electric Board has responded with a “$260 credit,effective April 1, to customers who have experienced a job loss related to the crisis. Income guidelines will be waived for this benefit. Eligible customers need only show proof of unemployment benefits from the Oregon Department of Employment.”
EWEB’s website also states “EWEB is temporarily suspending service disconnections and late fees for customer non-payment during the coronavirus crisis.”
Fifth, Lane County has opened up a Small Business Emergency Loan Fund, a microloan program for small businesses with less than 20 employees, or people who are self employed and have a business license. These first-come-first-serve loans have a very forgiving repayment process. Eligible businesses can receive up to $30,000 which will allow businesses to stay operating, or allow businesses to weather the storm so that employees working at those businesses will have jobs to come back to. The application process opened on March 22.
“While these microloans might not offer immediate relief to individuals who have experienced job loss,” Davis said, “they will provide that infrastructure stability to ensure that there are jobs to come back to.” Lane County contributed $200,000 to fund the program, Springfield and Eugene contributed $100,000 each.
Statewide Considerations
Governor Brown has issued a statewide moratorium on evictions for non-payment and no-cause contract terminations during the crisis. The executive order issued on April 22, effective for 90 days, states that
“law enforcement actions relating to residential evictions for nonpayment of rent and related costs will prevent economically vulnerable Oregonians from having to leave their homes to seek temporary or new shelter, and will make it significantly easier for them to continue to practice the effective social distancing that is vital to control the spread of this pandemic. It also will conserve housing resources and help reduce economic hardship and related life, health, and safety risks to Oregonians.”
Other fees, such as late fees on rent, are still being considered at the state level and the government is working on a comprehensive package. “The last thing that anybody wants, local or state government, is to drive people to homelessness,” said Davis.
Springfield Eugene Tenants Association is a resource for staying abreast of local and statewide tenant law and resources. SETA posts updates on their website as legislation develops to address tenant rights during this virus crisis. The nonprofit has a hotline available for residents to call.
Legal Aid Services of Oregon has also published “Important information on evictions (FEDs) in Oregon,” a statement helping renters understand their legal rights and options during this outbreak.
Property owners with mortgages have received similar consideration at the state — and federal — level to help shoulder the burden. There will be no penalties for non-payment of mortgages, zero interest rates on mortgage payments that can potentially be delayed for up to 12 months. Foreclosures sales and evictions are put on hold. Mortgage holders can elect to reduce their monthly payments as well. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac each published information on their websites to help borrowers understand their options, which are flexible and forgiving.
NPR recently published an article summarizing the emergency mortgage laws’ key elements and said, “Fannie and Freddie are directing lenders not to report people to the credit bureaus for late or missed payments if they are in one of these forbearance plans.”
The article continued saying, “These moves don’t do anything to help renters. Many municipalities are halting evictions for people who can’t pay rent. And housing advocates hope the federal government comes up with a program soon to offer financial assistance to renters who in most cases have fewer financial resources than homeowners.”
On March 20, property management agencies in Lane County had directed tenants financially affected by the outbreak to submit a free form located on Oregon Rental Housing Association’s website. The agencies said they intend to use this form to decide “on a case-by-case basis” whether to allow tenants to receive special allowances during the outbreak. A phone call to the lawyer who drafted the form, Brian Cox, has not been returned for comment as of March 27.
Over the past two years, ORHA lobbied against statewide rent control that would have capped yearly rental payment increases to 4% per unit. Although dissenting legislative opinions argued that a 7% increase would be way too high, ORHA lobbying prevailed with a yearly 8% increase per rental unit, a percentage outpacing inflation. Jim Straub, the grandson of a former Oregon governor, third-generation career landlord and owner of local Acorn Property Management, is the organization’s legislative director.
There appears little time to evaluate the rising costs of paying monthly rent, so taxpayers will have to compensate for this housing crisis during the pandemic. As another property management agency said on March 20, “We are hoping the government will help fund those in need so we can continue to collect rent and to help owners pay the mortgage.”
Numerous agencies have been keen to express that individual homeowners own the properties they rent, not the agency, which is only half-truth.
On March 26, Acorn Property Management reached out to tenants with an email:
“We appreciate your patience during all the chaos that COVID-19 is bringing. We understand that this pandemic has put a strain on many of you and your families with kids home from school, limited work or not being able to work at all right now. Hopefully I can pass on some good news. At this time, what I know is that last night [on a federal level] the US Senate unanimously passed a $2 Trillion economic aid package in response to the pandemic. The bill will be sent to the US House of Representatives for consideration and vote tomorrow (3/20) morning. It is widely expected to be quickly passed and then the President will sign it into law tomorrow afternoon. If/When this bill passes, most American families will receive $1,200 per adult and $500 per child within two weeks’ time. On top of that, it seems unemployment benefits, if you are out of work, will cover up to 100% of your lost wages. If this all works out, people should be held over until this crisis ends.”
According to housing data published in the latest government census, 51% of Eugene’s population were renters who paid an average gross rent of $988 per month, an estimate adjusted to include monthly utility expenses. These updated numbers are based on 2010 data projecting five year estimates for periods between 2014-2018. Since then, the average costs of monthly rent increased, creating an affordable housing crisis wrapped within a virus crisis.
In 2019, the City of Eugene aimed to “identify barriers in housing affordability” and administered a staff-implemented process that yielded the “Eugene Housing Tools and Strategies Evaluation,” a report which leans heavily on the aforementioned 2010 census data. 58% of renter households spent greater than 30% of income on rent and 36% spent greater than 50%. The statistics for Lane County and across Oregon all fall within 8% below Eugene’s.
The report clearly states: “The median monthly rental rate for market-rate multifamily units is not affordable for over two-thirds of Eugene’s renter households. The median rent in multifamily rental buildings is $1,058, which would require a minimum income of $42,300 to be considered affordable. However, the median renter household has an income of $26,000.”
Let’s hope the City of Eugene receives another good self-administration shortly after the 2020 census, for good measure of the actual decade to come this time around, and to not restrategize affordable housing policies for the future decade with housing projections made from the census data collected ten years ago.
Current data published by Kaiser Family Foundation shows that one third of individuals could not afford an unexpected $500 dollar medical bill.
Federal Considerations
On March 26, congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Relief Act, which provides a 2 trillion dollar stimulus package. Broadly speaking, anyone earning less than $75,000 per year will receive about $1,200 per month, as well as heads of households earning less than $112,00 per year. Joint filers and married partners earning less than $150,00 are eligible for $2,400. Parents can receive rebates worth $500 per child. Although the act expands eligibility to include workers who are independent contractors or self-employed, S-corp businesses are an exception. As a safety net, anyone under orders to be quarantined because of Covid-19 is eligible, regardless of employment status. Unemployment benefits are extended 13 weeks, with $600 extra per week on top of state unemployment insurance. Stimulus checks will be delivered within two to three weeks. The amount of the checks is based off 2019 IRS tax filings, or 2018 filings if 2019 has yet to be filed. If an individual’s taxes haven’t been filed recently, the situation remains unclear at the moment.
Filing federal tax payments to the IRS has been deferred from April 15 to July 15, which may temporarily provide peace of mind.
Federal student loan payments are suspended until September 23. The bill passed on March 27 says borrowers can receive a six month reprieve on paying student loans, during which time interest will not accrue nor nonpayment affect credit scores or loan qualifications.
The unhoused
In an interview presented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the executive director of the National Healthcare for the Homeless Council, John Lozier, said that “being sick in the first place” is often one relational characteristic between poor health and homelessness. “People get sick, they lose their jobs, they go bankrupt, they lose their homes, they become homeless; it’s a tragically common path. The other side of the problem is that homelessness, in turn, causes health problems.”
“Half of all personal bankruptcies in the United States have to do with medical cost and unpaid medical bills.”
High-risk individuals for becoming homeless may include students, individuals who lack support networks like family and close friends, or those without savings to buffer themselves from the crisis. Many people are anxious about returning to their respective homes for fear of infecting family members.
“When we talk about prevention and homelessness, we need to talk about two things,” said Lozier.
Homelessness prevention requires two considerations. “We need to talk about preventing homelessness in the first place, because of the health consequences that it carries,” said Lozier. “And when we talk about preventing homelessness in the first place, we have to talk about providing affordable housing for everybody; providing accessible health care for everybody, and providing adequate income to function in our society for everybody. We have failed on all three fronts, so far. Therefore, we continue to have mass homelessness in this country that we didn’t know 50 years ago.” Now consider how this interview was published in 2018, when the idea of an economy-destroying global pandemic was a plausible pitch for a blockbuster.
Considerations concerning Eugene’s unhoused population are evolving to provide equitable care, especially medical care.
One of the biggest considerations of the virus is the mantra wash your hands, wash your hands, wash your hands. “Obviously if you’re unhoused and don’t have running water, washing your hands can be impossible,” Davis said. A number of hand sanitizing stations have been made available throughout Lane County. There’s a map on the City of Eugene’s website illustrating locations of hygiene stations in Eugene.
Additionally, housing units and hotels have been identified for people who do not have a home and not in need of hospitalization, but need to be quarantined or isolated if they develop symptoms. “As we start to identify individuals who have symptoms and are unhoused, they will need someplace to recuperate,” Davis said.
“Even if you’re not needing hospitalization, having Covid-19, at least with some of the symptoms I’ve seen,” Davis explains, “would be absolutely miserable if you’re in a shelter, or if you’re just on the street. So really taking that into consideration and understanding people need a place to recover has been a priority for us.”
“Know that your local government has you on their minds,” Davis said. “We are aware of the impact Covid-19 has had on everybody in Lane County from business owners to those people who work at those businesses, to people that are unemployed, to people who are unhoused and on the street. We know that this is affecting everyone. We are doing our very best to consider all of our different communities and provide what they need. Your patience is appreciated and we will be working for you.”
It’s important to know where to get support, now more than ever. Here is a checklist to help begin the process of preparing:
1. Unemployment Insurance in Oregon
2. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
3. Food for Lane County
4. Utility bill forgiveness
5. Loan and mortgage forgiveness
6. Defer taxes until July 15th
7. Springfield Eugene Tenants Association
8. Legal Aid Services of Oregon9. Oregon Health & Science University COVID-19 hotline
