New law bars NYC evictions, foreclosures through May 1

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A new state law will bar tenant evictions and foreclosures on small property owners through May 1 amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The state Senate and Assembly are both expected to pass the COVID-19 Emergency Eviction and Foreclosure Prevention Act Monday afternoon and Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he will sign it into law.

MILLIONS OF AMERICANS CAN’T AFFORD RENT AND EVICTION LOOMS

A sign reads "Evictions = Death" during a protest in Foley Square in New York on Oct. 1, 2020. (Paul Frangipane/Bloomberg via Getty Images) 

"People are really struggling. We don’t want to see people put out on the street. This bill is about keeping them in their homes," said Assemblyman Jeff Dinowitz (D-Bronx), chief author of the law.

Under the legislation, all ongoing eviction-related matters and residential foreclosure proceedings would be stayed or frozen for 60 days.

These proceedings could be further stayed until May 1, 2021, if a tenant, homeowner or small landlord files an application of hardship.

The measure also prohibits negative credit ratings to homeowners who receive a stay on a mortgage foreclosure, tax foreclosure, or tax lien sale, or if they are in arrears and file a hardship declaration.

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The bill also extends property tax exemptions to senior citizens and disabled homeowners without having to refile for the break this year.

Manty S. Kaba holds up a notice to pay an outstanding balance of her rent from her apartments' property management company, during a protest against evictions and in support of the movement to "cancel rent" outside the Bronx housing court on August 10, 2020 (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)

But the city’s major landlords group opposes the legislation as going too far.

CUOMO EXTENDS MORATORIUM ON EVICTIONS IN NEW YORK

"Owners recognize and support the need to help tenants without sufficient financial resources to pay rent due to job loss or health circumstances. However, this proposed bill extends the eviction moratorium for residential tenants based on the submission of a simple declaration of financial hardship without proving such hardship caused by COVID-related job loss or income reduction," said Joseph Strasburg, president of the Rent Stabilization Association, which represents 25,000 owners of the 1 million rent-stabilized apartments in the five boroughs.

"With no requirement of proof that the COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected their income, and no income limitation to qualify for eviction protection, a tenant whose household income went from a half-million dollars to $250,000 would qualify for eviction protection by declaring that their income has been ‘significantly reduced,’" Strasburg said.

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Strasburg said the New York bill is less stringent than California’s law, which requires tenants earning at least $100,000 to provide documentation supporting their hardship claims. 

"A cap on the amount of the rent level would ensure that the benefits of this proposed bill reach those that need it," he said.