NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — New York's order barring evictions expired today. People who can prove financial hardship due to the pandemic are protected, but lawyers say there are loopholes and warn landlords will exploit them.
On Monday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced he would be extending protections for renters amid the pandemic.
“The Residential Tenant Eviction Protection, I'm going to extend that executive order to Jan. 1, 2021,” he said earlier in the week.
The announcement appeared comprehensive, but lawyers warned New Yorkers to read the fine print.
“What he announced was not actually what he did,” explains Ellen Davidson with the Legal Aid Society.
New York’s Tenant Safe Harbor Act is meant to protect tenants from COVID-related residential evictions and foreclosures if they are suffering financial hardship.
Though, Davidson explains the blanket ban on evictions is gone and was simply replaced with a policy that allows eviction proceedings to begin again.
“If those tenants know to raise the fact that they've been impacted by a COVID-related financial hardship, he's giving them an opportunity to fight with their landlords to see if the judge agrees to allow them to come under the protection of the moratorium,” she explained.
If tenants cannot prove financial difficulty, they can still be evicted. Davidson notes it’s also a difficult process for those who cannot afford, or don’t know to bring an attorney.
Now, she fears the worst will happen.
“People are going to be evicted into homelessness at a point in which COVID rates are going up across the state,” she said.
Even if tenants can prove financial hardship, they can still be evicted in January 2021, unless further action is taken by the governor.
Stay informed, stay connected — follow WCBS 880 on Facebook and Twitter. Download the RADIO.COM app + favorite WCBS 880 for breaking news, traffic and weather alerts.