Longmonters who are behind on their rent because of complications caused by the coronavirus pandemic might get a break from the city under a proposed ordinance being considered Tuesday night.
City council is scheduled to discuss barring property owners from charging additional fees to tenants who are late with their rent payments due to COVID-19 hardships. Council members will hash over the proposal during a work session.
An ordinance is scheduled to be placed before council for a vote on Oct. 13.
Longmont’s examination of rental relief comes on the heels of a report that says U.S. renters will owe up to $34 billion in past-due rent by January, increasing eviction filings and imposing financial hardship on millions in just a few months, according to the National Council of State Housing Agencies.
“This analysis is more proof that a huge wave of evictions and additional financial pain will crash on the American economy soon unless Congress authorizes emergency aid to renters,” NCSHA Executive Director Stockton Williams stated in a news release.
Longmont’s proposed ordinance mirrors one approved earlier this year by Broomfield, city staff members stated in a memo to council.
According to the staff report, Longmont’s draft ordinance would:
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Temporarily prohibit property owners from assessing fees for late rent payments due to a COVID-19-related hardship.
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Suggests documentation that residents can use to establish hardship. Evidence of hardship could include a layoff notice, a letter or other statement from the tenant’s employer saying the tenant’s employment and “associated compensation” has been affected by COVID-19. A member of the tenant’s household who contributes to the rent also can be included in the ordinance as long as they also contribute documentation.
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Ends the prohibition on property owners with the expiration of the Centers for Disease Control Eviction Moratorium Order, which is currently set for Dec. 31, unless it is extended by the CDC or when Gov. Jared Polis rescinds the declaration of a disaster emergency related to COVID-19.
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Sets penalties of fines up to $500.
The ordinance does not absolve renters from rent payments, only the fees that come with late payments, according to the staff report.
Because of the short turnaround bringing the ordinance before council, the draft was put together without determining the extent of the problem of late fees on local rental tenants, the report stated. City staff also did not get input from Longmont property owners, tenants and other interested parties, according to the report.
“Without this input and additional analysis, staff is concerned about unintended consequences associated with this draft ordinance,” the report stated.
Some property owners are now requiring two months’ rent up front, in addition to a security deposit, as a result of extra costs they might now need to carry as a result of COVID-19 restrictions, according to the staff report.
Staff members suggested council could consider a broader look at late fees as a form of “liquidated damages” for the additional expenses of the property owner, but place a cap on those fees.
For example, late fees can be no more than 3% of the rent amount, and cannot be assessed until five days after the date rent is due, the staff report stated. “This strategy recognizes that property owners … and tenants both need to be able to thrive,” the report stated.
Staff members also note that Polis has appointed a new temporary task force within the Department of Local Affairs to examine housing instability due to COVID-19 in Colorado. The task force will present its findings and recommendations in mid-October.
