Eviction Horror Coming?

Possession of a home is nine-tenths of the law, or so ‘they’ say. That means, stay put in your domicile and maintain possession. Whether it is a house, apartment, condo or tent, home is where you are and your family.

During the pandemic people lost their income, livelihood, means of paying for housing, food, clothing, transportation, and everything else. That doesn’t mean people stopped paying for things, they continued to spend what they had available. The problem is housing is the number one cost of American life.

Rent or mortgage, housing costs are a quarter to over half of a family’s income. That’s the statistic. If you spend less, count yourself lucky. Housing costs include rent or mortgage, property taxes payable, utilities, maintenance and in some cases homeowner association monthly fees. Altogether these costs amount to a hefty amount of ‘disposable income.’ Not much is left over for health care, food, clothing, supplies, transportation, and anything else. In such circumstances, any expense is a luxury even though it truly is a necessity.

So, in a pandemic. Government bodies stepped up and placed a moratorium on evictions, that is, legally enforceable removal from homes for lack of payment of rent and mortgage payments. Some funds were appropriated to pay some of this expense for the resident, but the funds have been tied up in bureaucratic red tape for the most part.

Of course, this meant the recipients of rent and mortgage payments, were left holding the bag. Their expenses continued regardless of tenant or mortgage holder inability to pay. With each month of eviction moratoriums adding up, the pressure on banks, landlords, homeowners and tenants multiplied. What a mess was brewing.

In the beginning, most of us expected the pandemic to be short lived. We were wrong. It lasted a year and a half and continues as we read this post. Some families were able to maintain employment and work from home. They received uninterrupted income and were able to pay rent and mortgage payments. Elders on social security and retirement benefits were also able to keep up housing payments. Many households, however, have not paid one dollar for housing during most of this time.

Now what? I suggested near the beginning of the pandemic that a bank holiday be declared for both mortgage payees and payors so banks would not foreclose, and they would not be penalized either. Complicated I know, but something enormous like this needs to be done.

Congress is once again dithering over what to do. President Biden has recommended a continuation of the moratorium until a comprehensive solution is found.

One thing we cannot afford at this time – for anyone – is a vast increase in homelessness just as a housing shortage matures into crisis mode. Let us put our heads together and find a workable solution that benefits everyone.

These are our own families and friends being affected. Surely we can find a way to help them.

August 5, 2021