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Evictions And Foreclosures Temporarily Suspended

By Anthony SanFilippo
March 2020

In order to keep renters and multifamily properties in their homes, while also supporting multifamily property owners during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) national emergency, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced a suspension of all evictions for renters unable to pay rent and a mortgage forbearance for property owners due to the impact of the pandemic.

“Renters should not have to worry about being evicted from their home, and property owners should not have to worry about losing their building, due to the coronavirus,” said FHFA director Mark Calabria.

The eviction suspensions will remain in place for the entirety of the duration that a property owner remains in forbearance and is available to all multifamily properties with a mortgage backed by either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac that was negatively impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak.

“Renters should not have to worry about being evicted from their home, and property owners should not have to worry about losing their building, due to the coronavirus,” said FHFA director Mark Calabria. “The multifamily forbearance and eviction suspension offered by (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) should bring peace of mind to millions of families during this uncertain and difficult time.

“Fannie and Freddie are working with mortgage servicers to ensure that these programs are implemented immediately so that property owners and renters experiencing hardship because of the coronavirus can get the assistance they need.”

In conjunction, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), authorized the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) to implement an immediate foreclosure and eviction moratorium for single family homeowners with FHA-insured mortgages for a period of 60 days.

“(This) will allow households who have an FHA-insured mortgage to meet the challenges of COVID-19 without fear of losing their homes, and help steady market concerns,” said HUD Secretary Ben Carson. “The health and safety of the American people is of the utmost importance to the Department, and the halting of all foreclosure actions and evictions for the next 60 days will provide homeowners with some peace of mind during these trying times.”

The FHA continued to encourage servicers to offer its myriad of loss mitigation options to distressed borrowers – including those that could be impacted by the Coronavirus – to help prevent them from going into foreclosure. These include short and long-term forbearance options, mortgage modifications, and other mortgage payment relief options available based on the borrower’s individual circumstances.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Kathleen L. Kraninger said that the actions taken by HUD and the FHFA are both timely and important to provide assurance to consumers and lauded both bodies for being proactive and providing Americans with some needed peace of mind.

“Earlier this month, the Bureau, along with our Federal and State partners, encouraged financial institutions to work with their customers affected by the coronavirus,” Kraninger said. “Consumers’ first stop in the face of hardship is with their creditors and their financial institutions, so our message was important for regulated entities to hear. I will continue to work with our Federal and State partners, and seek feedback from stakeholders, to ensure we are providing appropriate flexibilities to benefit consumers during this time.”


Visit our COVID-19 Page for the latest news and information from Home Ownership Matters on COVID-19 and its impact on homeowners, housing and communities across the country.

Guidelines and protocol surrounding COVID-19 are changing quickly. For the most up-to-date information we recommend visiting the CDCWHO, and your local health department websites.


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