COVID has left some Californians struggling to pay the rent. Here’s how we’re helping

On New Year’s Day, Graciela Alvarado, a mother of three, nervously thought about her immediate future. Would she and her family have a place to live by the end of the month? How much longer would her landlord wait as she struggled to pay five months of past due rent?

It all started with a small, but persistent cough. Last September, Alvarado, her husband, Victor, and all three of their children were diagnosed with COVID-19. While they all eventually recovered, the financial pain has been more enduring. Alvarado and her husband both lost their jobs, robbing them of their ability to pay their bills. Struggling to get back on their feet, the monthly rent payments piled up fast. They now owe about $8,000.

Alvarado’s family — like hundreds of thousands of Californian renters — were on the verge of losing their home as eviction protections were set to expire at the end of January, leaving them with no rental protections or resources to pay their accumulated debt.

It was fitting, then, that Alvarado joined Gov. Gavin Newsom, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and Senate President pro Tempore Toni Atkins as the governor signed into law the COVID-19 Tenant Relief Act (Senate Bill 91). The new law extends to June 30 protections that allow Alvarado’s family — and all Californians that have experienced a COVID-19 financial hardship — to remain in their homes without fear of eviction.

The new law goes even further by directing $2.6 billion in federal relief to stabilize low-income tenants through the payment of rent to landlords who have also struggled to make ends meet during the pandemic.

Landlords who participate in the rental assistance program will be reimbursed up to 80 cents to the dollar of back rent in exchange for forgiving the remaining past due rent. If landlords choose not to participate, tenants can still receive financial assistance to meet their partial payment obligations as required by the law. The financial incentives in this new law will draw broad landlord participation and ensure that families are not just able to stay housed, but also receive help in clearing rental debt.

Without this support, many Californians will be unable to regain their financial footing. The protections offer new hope to families across the state whose lives have been upended by the pandemic.

As we stand up the state’s emergency rental assistance program, we are engaging diverse partners in communities most impacted by the pandemic. As trusted institutions in their community, they will be the bridge to providing robust outreach and education efforts and ensuring that those who have been hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic get the help they need and deserve. We have also launched the HousingisKey.com website and call center, staffed and ready to answer questions and offer assistance in multiple languages to tenants and landlords.

The state begins accepting applications for the COVID-19 Rent Relief Program on Mar. 15.

For Alvarado, her landlord and hundreds of thousands of others in their shoes, help is on the way.