What landlords are saying about the CDC’s eviction ban

Quote by Jonathan Needell  |  MarketWatch

September 5, 2020

Landlords say the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s unprecedented order for a national moratorium on evictions doesn’t solve pandemic problems without providing more rental assistance.

The sweeping pause on evictions took hold Tuesday evening, cover some 40 million renters and will apply through Dec. 31 for qualifying tenants who fill out a form and deliver it to their landlords.

The CDC’s finalized order aims to provide housing stability and prevent further spread of COVID-19, which top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci said remains “unacceptably high” going into Labor Day.

But it also formalized a process that tenants and landlords across America have been trying to navigate on an ad hoc basis for months.

“I can’t believe we didn’t think of its sooner,” said Jonathan Needell, chief investment officer at Kairos Investment Management, of the CDC’s eviction ban, which he views as the federal government recognizing “that for health reasons, you can’t put people on the street.”

“The reality is we’ve been dealing with an eviction moratorium throughout this whole time anyway,” he said, referring to the hodgepodge of state and local orders that paused evictions since March, as well as courts that have been operating at limited capacity, creating backlogs for landlords looking to evict tenants who owe backrent.

Prior to this week’s CDC order, renter evictions were picking back up in some major U.S. cities, including since the extra $600 in unemployment benefits expired in July.

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