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Will the US economy recover soon? 2:13
(CNN Business) - With nearly 10 million Americans reporting being unemployed in March, April 1 was known to be a difficult day for American tenants.
Now we know how difficult: Nearly a third of American tenants did not pay their rent this month.
That's according to data from the National Council for Multifamily Housing (NMHC), a trade association for the apartment rental sector.
Of more than 13 million units in the US Covering the report, 69% of tenants paid their rent between April 1 and 5. During the same period in April 2019, 82% of households paid the rent on time, according to the report.
And last month, 81% of tenants paid the rent before March 5.
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The above is evidence of how the coronavirus pandemic is devastating the US job market. and, as a result, the financial health of Americans.
The $ 2 trillion federal government stimulus bill will cushion falls for some Americans: Renters in affordable federally subsidized housing will be able to get help, including a 120-day moratorium on evictions and surcharges.
But most rental properties are owned by private owners and are therefore not eligible, although some multi-family homeowners with federally-backed mortgages may receive a benefit on their payments as long as they don't evict their tenants.
Before the sharp rise in jobless claims, at least half of states and dozens of cities temporarily halted evictions in March, but rent was still pending. And while missing a payment may not immediately result in the eviction, continuing to skip it would.
There are other forms of help, however. Solomon Greene, principal investigator on housing policy at the Urban Institute, suggested that tenants alert their landlords about their inability to pay and seek help from nonprofits, or use their stimulus check included in the $ 2 stimulus trillions to cover some of their expenses.
And in other cases, strangers pay bills. A CNN viewer surprised a guest on Erin Burnett OutFront by paying the rent. The guest, like millions of other workers in the service sector, had lost her job.
Putting numbers in perspective
While the data is troubling, it needs to be put in context, said Priscilla Almodovar, CEO of Enterprise Community Partners, a national nonprofit organization that develops affordable housing.
There are 44 million renter households in the country, and NMHC data only reflects data from 13.4 million rental units and does not include subsidized housing, a lifesaver for many low-income people.
Also, Almodóvar said, there were probably logistical challenges for people who paid the rent on time in April. Many offices were closed and standard operating procedures for much of daily life were interrupted. On the 5th of the month, often when a late fee is incurred and when the NMHC survey period ended, it also fell on a Sunday.
We really won't have a precise idea of what the impact of millions of people who filed for unemployment will be until May, he said.
"People were working in March. April's rent may have come from her savings, ”said Almodóvar. “The rent check is probably the first thing they pay. Now they may be unemployed and we don't know what resources will come to them in time for May. ”
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Your organization is asking for direct rental assistance, in which the government pays the rents for distressed tenants.
"It allows money to go up the scale," said Flora Arabo, senior national director of state and local policy for Enterprise Community Partners. “In April, there is still time for the money to flow. What happens when eviction moratoriums are lifted? There is now a critical window for obtaining emergency assistance for those who need it. ”
Meanwhile, some homeowners offer discounts and payment plans to help tenants.
Clay Grubb, CEO of Grubb Properties, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based multi-family home developer, offered a 10% discount to tenants who paid by April 1. Almost 70% of their tenants took advantage of the discount, saving them in total almost $ 400,000 in rent.
"We decided to provide a new program for the remaining 30% of residents," said Grubb.
If they paid their April rent in a timely manner, which could mean through a payment program, they would get a 10% credit toward their May rental. Starting April 8, Grubb collected April rentals from 94% of its residents.
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It also relaxed the requirements for tenants who want to terminate a lease, reducing a 30-day notice and a two-month rental requirement to 15 days and one-month rent. So far, 22 tenants, less than 1%, took advantage of that.
As Grubb noted, there is an "importance of compassion when it comes to the relationship that homeowners have with their residents and the ways that homeowners can help in this crisis."
Rentals in the United States
