Mortgage and Rental Assistance are available, but you MUST APPLY!
Millions of people around the country are behind on their rents and mortgages due to Covid, and the minimal protections of State and Federal Eviction Moratoriums are about to end. Laura Norman distributes rental assistance funds in New Mexico and she’s very busy these days, but she’s not busy scrambling to FIND money. She told us her biggest problem is most people don’t know they QUALIFY for money that’s already out there!
Oregon isn’t New Mexico but financial assistance is available nationwide for anyone DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY affected by Covid. If Covid put you in the hospital then you were obviously directly affected, but many people don’t realize when they’ve been indirectly affected. Did you lose work hours because of Covid? Affected. Did your mortgage payment go to a Covid funeral for a loved one? Affected. Did your rent have to cover food or child care? Affected. Most programs are designed to help those with less than 80% of the area median income, so there may be a financial bar to meet too. You’ll have to talk with a rep to figure out if/how you qualify, but the Government is working hard to get this money out, and Laura told us they’re looking hard for reasons to say ‘yes’ rather than ‘no’.
If someone you know is threatened with eviction or foreclosure then THERE IS HELP but it’s not a fast process. You’ll have your fill of bureaucratic red tape and it could be weeks before you see a check, but best to get the ball rolling now. These are the places you’ll want to start, and if you (thankfully!) don’t need this information, PLEASE pass it along to someone you know that does. Thanks, and GOOD LUCK!
Mortgage Assistance
Oregon Homeownership Stabilization Initiative
Oregon.Gov- Homebuyers & Homeowners Mortgage Payment Help
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau- Help for homeowners and renters
Rental Assistance
US Dept of the Treasury- Emergency Rental Assistance Program
US Dept of Housing and Urban Development- Covid-19 Resources for renters
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau- Help with rent and utilities
Info on State and Federal Eviction Moratoriums
From the beginning, Moratoriums have been a confusing, ad-hoc, patchwork-by-jurisdiction, unreliable cluster-fork, but here’s the latest information we could find…
Oregon.Gov-There is a foreclosure moratorium in Oregon until Sept. 30, 2021.
KATU2- Oregonians still have some tenant protections as national eviction ban expires
KGW8- After federal moratorium expires, local and state eviction protections remain in place
