LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — For the fourth time, the federal authorities have extended the national eviction moratorium to help millions of residents who have fallen behind on their rent during the coronavirus pandemic.
On Thursday, the Biden administration announced it will push back the deadline of the eviction moratorium from June 30 to July 31, adding it will be the last time it will extend its expiration date.
According to the Low Income Housing Authority, since March 2020, 6.4 million American households have been unable to pay their rent. More than 81,000 families struggling to pay rent are in Nevada.
RELATED: Biden administration extends federal eviction moratorium for renters and homeowners until July 31
The White House wants to buy more time to get federal rent relief money to tenants who need it. Since the start of the pandemic, more than $50 billion dollars has been allocated.
The Nevada Housing Division is using its share to help renters through the CARES Housing Assistance Program. Criteria to qualify for the program includes loss of employment, reduction in work hours or reduction in wages due to the COVID-19 impact, as well as income restrictions on a per county basis. The Nevada Housing Division has been hosting seminars to help struggling renters apply to the program.
Not everyone is happy about the federal government's decision to extend the national evictions moratorium.
In a statement to KTNV, the Nevada State Apartment Association said,
"We are extremely disappointed that the federal moratorium yet again has been extended. It is essential that the eviction moratorium sunsets to mitigate any additional damage to both renters and their housing providers and is appropriate given the trajectory of both the COVID-19 health crisis and Nevada’s economic recovery. The expiration will also allow housing providers to discuss and execute flexible payment plans, making payment plans, not eviction plans."
Relief funds from the federal government are also meant to prevent mom-and-pop landlords from filing bankruptcy because their tenants can't pay rent.
For more information on receiving housing assistance, click here.
