If you rent or own property in Oregon, state law protects you from eviction due financial hardship through June 30,2021. Here’s what you need to know about the new law (adapted from Oregon Law Center presentation, 2020):
For Renters:
- All tenants continue to owe rent, even though the moratorium postpones eviction.
- All non-payment notices issued from January 1, 2021 through June 30, 2021 must give 10 days’ notice instead of the usual 72 hours.
- Tenants without hardship must pay monthly rent starting January 2021.
- Tenants without hardship have until March 31, 2021 to pay back rent from April 2020 – December 2020.
- Tenants with any financial hardship are protected from eviction due to non-payment of rent through June 30, 2021.
- Landlords cannot evict qualifying tenants for nonpayment of current or back rent during this time.
- They can evict for other “for cause” reasons. Please review lease or rental agreements to understand those reasons.
***Tenants MUST submit a Hardship Declaration to their landlord ASAP!***
You can find the form here in English / Spanish.
You can send it in writing by mail, personal delivery or a photo via email or text.
Make sure that you keep a copy for your records!!
Until July 1, 2021, Landlords cannot do or threaten to do any of the following to QUALIFYING tenants:
- Deliver a termination notice based on non-payment (aka “72-hour notice’);
- File an eviction lawsuit based on non-payment of rent;
- Take any action that would interfere with a tenant’s possession or use of the unit based on non-payment of rent;
- Assess a late fee or any other penalty on non-payment of rent;
- Report a tenant’s non-payment balance as delinquent to any consumer credit reporting agency; or
- File an action to recover the non-payment balance
- Terminate a tenancy without cause
During the moratorium, Landlords can do the following:
- Terminate a tenancy for non-payment of rent for non-qualifying tenants
- Must give 10 days’ notice, notice of rights and copy of Declaration form
- Grace period to March 31, 2021 applies to debt from April-December 2020
- Terminate a tenancy for “landlord-based” reasons, after the first year of occupancy and with 90-day notice and relocation payments (in some circumstances):
- Landlord or immediate family member move-in,
- Significant repair or renovation,
- Demolition or change of use,
- Accepted offer from buyer who intends to move in
For Home Owners:
- House Bill 4204 prohibits lenders from pursuing foreclosures against homeowners and other borrowers. Missed payments will be due at the end of the loan term, if borrowers do not make other arrangements with their lender.
- If borrowers cannot make scheduled payments, they must notify their lender and explain that they cannot pay due to loss of income related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- NeighborImpact may be able to help pay your mortgage. Click here to learn about NeighborImpact’s COVID Mortage Assistance
- Contact your lender or mortgage servicer as soon as possible to see if your mortgage may qualify for federal programs related to COVID-19. Click here to see how NeighborImpact can help.
- Click here for answers to frequently asked questions
- You can also find other foreclosure prevention resources on the Oregon Housing and Community Services website.