Governor Northam Announces The Virginia Rent and Mortgage Relief Program

June 25, 2020July 6, 2020

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, today Governor Ralph Northam announced a COVID-19 housing fund called the Virginia Rent and Mortgage Relief Program and issued a call for courts to push for an extension of the eviction ban.

Virginia evictions are set to begin on Monday, June 29th after the denial of a moratorium extension from the Supreme Court of Virginia. Now, circuit court judges will have to decide to extend the moratorium locally. Virginia currently has one of the highest numbers of evictions in the country. Hundreds of eviction detainers were filled but were postponed during the moratorium extension. Virginia Rent and Mortgage Relief Program will launch on Monday. The Commonwealth’s government is set to have $50,000,000 set aside for rent and mortgage relief. More information will follow on how to apply and criteria to be eligible.

According to the RVA Eviction Lab in Richmond, minorities within the black and brown communities are more likely to face eviction notices due to living in Extremely Low Income (ELI) households. This is due to a myriad of factors:

• Neighborhood racial composition is a significant factor in determining eviction rates, even after controlling for income, property value, and other characteristics.

• As the share of the African American population increases, the eviction rate increases.

• As the share of non-Hispanic Whites increases, the eviction rate decreases.

• Demographic and housing market characteristics do not explain why high and low eviction rates are concentrated in certain parts of the city, suggesting that other factors such as rental housing ownership, financing, and property management strategies may play an important role in eviction.

Reaction to the Governor’s announcement was positive. The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus released the following statement, “The Governor and his Administration assured us that they would focus on providing financial relief,” said VLBC Chairman Lamont Bagby (D-74th, Henrico). “Together, we look forward to doing more to address underlying systemic issues related to housing and doing more to help provide relief.”

The VLBC also called upon the Chief Judges in each circuit to refrain from acting on previous eviction proceedings.

Monica Sarmiento, executive director of the Virginia Coalition for Immigrant Rights, provided the following statement:“COVID-19 pandemic has hit the immigrant community the hardest. During the last few months, immigrant families have had landlords illegally evicting people or have been facing eviction threats. We urge localities to work with circuit court judges to extend the eviction ban for the hundreds and potentially thousands of people who are still are not able to make rent.

The housing fund is the first of many steps that will be taken to ensure that families are on their way to economic recovery. We are grateful that Governor Northam has taken an initiative to provide protection to Virginians. We look forward to working with the Governor on more equitable policies that put Virginia’s most vulnerable families first.”

For tenants looking for assistance on housing evictions, the Virginia Poverty Law Center has an Eviction Legal Helpline: 833-NOEVICT (833-663-8428). If no one is available to answer, leave a message for someone to return your call. Spanish Speakers are able to request assistance in Spanish.