Rent Moratorium Ends Today: What Does This Mean For Renters?

Today is the day that many renters in New York have been dreading. The rent eviction moratorium officially expires today, but advocates for the state's renters are hoping for another extension.

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According to CBS NY, Time is up, and the safeguards for many renters in New York are set to expire today. Without an extension, renters will lose the security that the eviction moratorium provided for them during the COVID-19 pandemic.

For about a year and a half landlords were unable to evict tenants who were adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Government officials worked with tenants throughout the entire pandemic to help them stay in their homes and prevent homelessness. However, nothing lasts forever and it’s time for renters to pay up, MAYBE!

New York lawmakers are expected to reconvene in the state’s capital to attempt to extend the moratorium through the end of the year. There are currently more than 220,000 eviction cases that are pending in the courts across the state.

Governor Kathy Hochul is asking lawmakers to return to Albany for a special session to work out the details of a potential extension. She is also trying to find ways to speed up payments to landlords with the $2 billion in federal relief funds that the state has been granted.

Landlords are not taking the potential extension lightly, they are threatening to sue the state to get the funds they believe they are entitled to. Joseph Strasburg is the president of the Rent Stabilization Association in New York. He said, “Financially desperate tenants and landlords don’t need a special legislative session, they need Albany to get the billions of dollars from the federally funded Emergency Rental Assistance Program out the door.”

The pandemic is far from over and people are still suffering. We are in one of the richest countries in the world so hopefully lawmakers can do more to help people avoid homelessness.