Letter to Speaker Pelosi, Leader McCarthy, Leader McConnell, and Leader Schumer - Meng and Ocasio-Cortez Lead NY Members in Calling for Rent and Mortgage Forgiveness in Next COVID-19 Relief Package

Letter

Dear Speaker Pelosi, Leader McCarthy, Leader McConnell, Leader Schumer:

We write to urge the inclusion of a national rent and mortgage forgiveness fund in the next
COVID-19 relief package. As people are fighting for their lives and their communities against
this pandemic, we cannot allow housing instability to exacerbate the challenges of meaningful
and inclusive relief and recovery.

As we know, this unprecedented public health crisis has essentially brought our economy to a
halt, wherein every week we see record breaking unemployment claims. The International
Monetary Fund has now projected the global economy will experience its worst recession since
the Great Depression. For families with little to no savings to fall back on, this has been, and
will continue be, catastrophic as they try to keep food on the table, cover the cost of prescription
drugs, or meet other expenses. Further, as state unemployment systems face an unprecedented
and overwhelming demand, millions more are expected to lose their sources of income.

With more cases than anywhere else in the country, New York has emerged as the "epicenter of
the epicenter". In dense, urban places like New York City, housing conditions and insecurity
have compounded the epidemiological risks of COVID-19. Tragically, poverty, overcrowded
homes, and lack of government action are contributing to the crisis we are seeing unfold as many
fear their inability to pay rent will result in homelessness. Nationally, nearly half of all renters
spend more than a third of their income on rent, while one-quarter of renters spend more than half of their monthly earnings. According to experts, 57 percent of renters cannot afford an
unexpected expense of $400 with the money they have on hand. For the working-class,
immigrant, or impoverished populations found in urban places this pandemic has proved
disastrous. As such, a national rent moratorium would ensure that these vulnerable communities
remain housed.

While we were pleased to see that the recent CARES Act included critical provisions to support
individuals and households experiencing housing instability, we must do more. The 120-day
eviction moratorium in the CARES Act is an important first step, but we must assure the
American people that they will not face insurmountable debt at the end of the moratorium. We
also recognize that these provisions are limited to rental housing supported by federal housing
programs, or federally-backed mortgages, which account for only one in four rental properties.

Therefore, we urge the establishment of a fund administered by the Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD) through which landlords would be reimbursed the cost of cancelling
rent for their tenants and through which homeowners may access mortgage forgiveness for the
duration of the pandemic, and for an additional six months after the pandemic is declared ended.
This should be extended to anyone with a current residential lease, small private landlords,
public housing authorities, nonprofit organizations or housing cooperatives. Further, any
recipient of the fund should be subject to heightened tenant protections. Not only does HUD
have the capacity to administer a program of this scale, but it would serve as a direct stimulus for
the countless families that are facing unprecedented economic hardship. We need a universal
program that will cover all renters without introducing costly bureaucratic measures that will
slow the receipt of aid and preserve the already limited stock of affordable housing. Additionally,
distressed asset investors are preparing to capitalize on, what they predict will be, regular
bankruptcy auctions in the property market. A mortgage forgiveness program would preserve
homeownership for the many families whose accumulated wealth will otherwise be decimated by
this crisis, and who will be disproportionately lower-income homeowners and people of color.

We have seen how this crisis has exposed the deeply entrenched inequities in our economic and
housing system. Therefore, we urge you to include a universal, national rent and mortgage
forgiveness fund in the next legislative package -- and ensure that as families fight for their
health, we protect their human right to stable housing.