Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that the moratorium on evictions in New York State has been extended to Sept. 4. The moratorium was first put in place in March to protect residential and commercial tenants facing financial hardship due to the pandemic. “As long as we are in the middle of the pandemic, there will be no evictions,” he wrote on Aug. 7.

 

On May 7, amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the governor announced that the state’s moratorium on COVID-related residential or commercial evictions would be extended for an additional 60 days until Aug. 20. He also announced, at that stage, that the State would ban late payments or fees for missed rent payments during the eviction moratorium, and allowed renters facing financial hardship to use their security deposits as rent payment, on the basis that their security deposit would be repaid later.

 

“During these incredibly difficult and stressful times we must protect New Yorkers who are facing financial hardships due to COVID-19,” the governor said at the time. “The majority of people in the State live paycheck to paycheck, and all of a sudden the paychecks have stopped for these individuals but the rent bill keeps coming in. In March we issued a moratorium on all residential and commercial evictions, and we are going to extend that moratorium until August 20th to provide some relief to those New Yorkers who are struggling.”

 

A variety of government agencies and nonprofit organizations provide support to those who have fallen behind on rent.

 

The CITYFEPS Rent Supplement Program can help eligible families with children at risk of entry to shelter and those already in shelter to secure permanent housing. The number of households that can be approved to receive the CITYFEPS Rent Supplement will be limited due to available funding. Potentially eligible families will be connected with CITYFEPS providers (community-based organizations), which will assist the family in completing an application and locating housing. Learn more about CITYFEPS.

 

The New York City Human Resources Administration (HRA) can assist tenants who have legal possession of an apartment, or applicants who have been evicted but whose landlords are willing to continue renting the apartment, by paying their arrears through a rental arrears grant. Grants are available for Public Assistance recipients and for those people ineligible for Public Assistance. Families and single adults are eligible. Visit 311 Online to contact the HRA Job Center in your area and apply for a rental arrears grant.

 

The Homeless Prevention Fund provides emergency financial assistance to households Citywide, who are unable to secure sufficient assistance through available programs and are at imminent risk of homelessness due to rent arrears. The Fund offers emergency financial assistance to low-income households who meet all of the following criteria:

 

• Household income range between $15,000 and $30,000 annually
• An eviction petition has been filed
• The household has the ability to pay rent in the future.

 

For more information on the Homeless Prevention Fund, contact:

 

Coalition for the Homeless
129 Fulton Street
New York, NY 10038
Eviction Prevention Hotline: (212) 776-2039

 

The Bridge Fund
105 East 22nd Street, Suite 621 E
New York, NY 10010
Phone: (212) 674-0812

 

Community Service Society
105 East 22nd Street, Room 409
New York, NY 10010
Phone: (212) 614-5375