Topic: In the News

More than 7,600 apartments, townhomes, and houses nationwide are currently exposed to at least one “coastal flood risk event” in a typical year, and more than 24,500 units may be so threatened by 2050, according to a new report by The National Housing Trust and Climate Central. Their analysis evaluates the risk to affordable housing from flooding related to sea-level rise over the next 30 years. In short, the number of affordable housing units at risk from coastal flooding and sea level rise is expected to more than triple over the next three decades.

Despite low interest rates and continued growth in some sectors, the health and economic consequences of COVID-19 coupled with racial tensions and climate change across the nation have exacerbated the rental supply and affordability crises, according to the recent 2020 State of the Nation’s Housing report. Released by Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS), the report can be found at www.jchs.harvard.edu/state-nations-housing-2020.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has announced that the IRS has extended to Nov. 21 the deadline to apply for a CARES Act Economic Impact Payment (EIP) for people who don’t normally file income taxes. The deadline had been Oct. 15 for eligible people to apply for their “stimulus checks.” The IRS urges non-filers to register using the free non-filers tool. This online tool was designed for eligible people who aren’t normally required to file a tax return.

On Oct. 9, the CDC issued FAQs for the eviction moratorium in place from Sept. 4 through Dec. 30. The FAQs were issued jointly by the CDC, HUD, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Department of Justice (DOJ) to clarify outstanding questions related to the declaration used by tenants to certify eligibility for the protections, as well as timing for housing providers initiating evictions.

Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), along with Senators Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), recently introduced a bill in the Senate to offer tax relief to individuals, businesses, and states affected by catastrophic wildfires, such as the ones devastating California, Oregon, and Washington, along with other presidentially declared disasters, such as Hurricane Sally, which has flooded parts of Gulf states like Florida, Alabama, and Louisiana.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) recently launched a Final 30 Days Push campaign to help eligible people apply for their Economic Impact Payments (EIPs), better known as “stimulus checks,” before the Oct. 15 deadline. According to the IRS, there are roughly nine million Americans who typically don’t file federal income tax returns who may be eligible for, but have not registered to claim, an economic impact payment.

U.S. renters will owe up to $34 billion in past-due rent by January, increasing eviction filings and imposing punishing financial hardship on millions in just a few months, according to a recent report by the National Council of State Housing Agencies (NCSHA). The report estimates roughly 10–14 million renter households were behind on their rent by a total of roughly $12–$17 billion as of Sept. 14.

Senate Democrats recently announced a proposal to invest $350 billion in communities of color, including specific policies that would increase investments in affordable housing and promote racial equity in homeownership.The Economic Justice Act proposes to provide communities of color disproportionately affected by coronavirus with $135 billion for child care, mental health care, primary care, and jobs, as well as $215 billion over the next five years for affordable housing, homeownership, and infrastructure.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently reported changes in renter households and affordability from 2001 to 2017. The report, “As More Households Rent, the Poorest Face Affordability and Housing Quality Challenges,” is the first in a GAO series that aims to provide a detailed assessment of the country’s housing market. It describes rental housing trends, including rental affordability and rental housing quality.

Because of the economic uncertainty related to the ongoing pandemic, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) recently proposed that its 2021 housing goals remain at the levels that they were for 2018–2020. The proposal establishes housing goals for single-family and multifamily housing.