Trump Administration Announces Ban On Evictions Through End Of Year, Critics Call It A Short-Term Solution

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork)- The Trump administration just announced a ban on evictions through the end of the year.

In an unusual move, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it's using its authority to protect public health and contain the spread of the coronavirus by keeping people in their homes, but critics say it's a Band-Aid.

The CDC's so-called eviction moratorium is welcome news to millions of renters, like mother of four Neomi Lopez.

"It's really scary knowing I'm in this situation," Lopez said. "We've had to live off of our savings."

RELATED STORY: Gov. Cuomo Extends Moratorium On Commercial Evictions Into September

The moratorium is expected to impact 40 million renters nationwide, who will be required to apply by showing substantial lost income this year, inability to pay full rent and best efforts to pay partial rent. They'd also have to prove that eviction would leave them homeless or force them into crowded living conditions. It applies to people who expect to make less than $99,000 this year.

"We have an inhumane housing system in America," said tenants rights advocate Sandy Perry. "This is the richest country in the world. We should be able to house our people."

But some housing experts and politicians call the administration's move a short-term solution to a long-term problem.

"People rely on these apartments for their income and for their retirement or both," said Doug Bibby, President of the Multifamily Housing Council.

Bibby says without help for owners, like property tax relief, we could see mass bankruptcies.

"I think they're terrified. It's not just the moms and pops," said Bibby. "I've talked to people who own 80,000 units and they're concerned too because their revenue models all go out the window. Doesn't matter who you are."

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"My biggest concern is this doesn't solve the underlying problem. If tenants are accumulating back rent, then they're still going to go over a cliff whenever this moratorium expires," NYC councilman Mark Levine told CBS2's Jessica Moore. "We've got to get tenants some relief for the rent that they can't afford to pay or sooner or later, we're going to have an absolute avalanche of evictions here in New York and beyond."

Levine says New Yorkers need federal assistance to ultimately forgive back rent unpaid during the pandemic. Without it, he's afraid the city's homeless crisis will skyrocket even further.

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