As the partial U.S. government shutdown lingers, the impact on both renters and landlords continues to grow.
At this point, eight-hundred-thousand federal employees have gone several weeks without a paycheck, and many will have an increasingly difficult time paying rent.
“Like Americans in the private sector, many federal employees rely on each and every paycheck to cover critical expenses, including housing,” Zillow senior economist Aaron Terrazas says in this news release.
While pay for federal employees is already frozen, dollars for Section 8 housing choice vouchers could dry up by March should the stalemate continue.
Under these scenarios — and whenever challenging circumstances arise — CAA urges all rental housing providers to work with their tenants to find an amicable solution to unpaid rent.
Here’s some information that may help property owners working with tenants whose rent money is tied up by the federal shutdown:
- The U.S. Office of Personnel Management tweeted out sample letters for federal employees to send to their creditors, mortgage companies and landlords. The letters suggest that employees ask to pay a reduced amount or create a payment plan in the coming months because they are out of work and not getting paid during the shutdown.
- U.S. Reps. Don Beyer, D-Va., and Rob Wittman, R-Va., have introduced the Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act, which would give furloughed workers back pay for the duration of the partial shutdown.
- Many banks are offering interest free loans to federal employees and waiving other fees to help them pay their financial obligations during the shutdown.