Home | Newsletter | Advertise
loading...

A Small Landlords Trade Group Calls for Emergency Rental Assistance in DC

  • July 24, 2020

by Nena Perry-Brown

One month after the Small Multifamily Owners Association (SMOA) launched in DC, the trade group is launching a campaign for emergency rental assistance.

Although DC has implemented an eviction moratorium that covers the duration of the public health emergency, the lack of rent cancellation and mounting unemployment  indicate that the expiration of the moratorium will trigger a wave of proceedings. This week, SMOA sent a letter to Mayor Muriel Bowser and the DC Council advocating for an "Emergency Eviction Diversion Program" (EEDP).

Because SMOA represents owners of rental properties with four to 50 units, the organization is asking that these properties be excluded from requirements to permit payment plans with tenants. The EEDP would serve as an alternative means of rent collection and eviction prevention among landlords and tenants in these properties.

"Both landlords and tenants face uncertainty and pressure from unpaid bills and the threat of costly and timely litigation," the letter reads, requesting removal of a provision that applicants for Emergency Rental Assistance Program funds must receive an eviction notice. "Thousands of DC residents could be evicted before they ever get an appointment for emergency assistance." 

In addition to ERAP, DC has deployed multiple rental assistance programs during the public health emergency. However, each program has a maximum household income for eligibility, up to 125% of area median income (AMI). There is also a program specific to residents of buildings with 50 or fewer units with incomes up to 60% of AMI.

The current state of emergency has been extended through October 9th. A recent Brookings Institution study estimated that one month of rental assistance to prevent evictions in DC would cost the city $5.2 million. 

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/dcs-small-landlords-trade-group-calls-for-emergency-rental-assistance/17100

DC Real Estate Guides

Short guides to navigating the DC-area real estate market

We've collected all our helpful guides for buying, selling and renting in and around Washington, DC in one place. Visit guides.urbanturf.com or start browsing below!

First-Timer Primers

Intro guides for first-time home buyers

Red Flags Revealed During a Home Inspection Top 5 Tax Breaks For Homeowners Tax Relief for DC Homeowners
Condo Fee Tutorial What is a Rent Back? 10 Ways To Tell If a Home Renovation is Well Done
Obtaining a Basic Business License For Your Rental What is an Adjustable Rate Mortgage? The Splitting the Rent Formula
How Much Cash Do You Need to Buy a House? Is This Condo Building Financially Healthy? Interest Rates and Mortgage Points
The Scoop on Mortgage Insurance

Unique Spaces

Awesome and unusual real estate from across the DC Metro

The Most Intriguing Loft in DC The R Street Firehouse DC’s One-Room House
Dupont Circle’s Old Frat House To Become Alley Home Best Transition From a Garage To a Home The Roundhouse
Tilden Gardens Restaurant-Turned-Home Hits Market Next Week Logan Circle’s Most Intriguing Garage Frank Lloyd Wright Goes Green in Kensington
Sears Bungalow Gets a Modern Makeover Old Town General Store Becomes Three-Level Home Making the Most of a Skinny House
A Studio 27 Renovation on Capitol Hill Once a Carriage House, Now a Home The Bank that Became a Home
From Pie to Hooch to Heroin to Home The Live-Aboards of Gangplank Marina A Treehouse with Rock Creek Park As A Backyard
Modern Tranquility in Sperryville Saddle Up For Stable Living Throwing a Curve at 550 Square Feet
A Modern Hilltop Retreat Tilden Street Restaurant Becomes Spacious Home Focus on Design: A Vastu Unit at 22 West
The DC Area’s First Net Zero Home A Yankee Goes Green DC’s First Carbon Neutral Home
Eco-Friendly Alley House Off H Street The Gym, The Stables and The Firehouse