COLOMBIA, SC (WIS) – A national study found that South Carolina residents need hundreds of millions of dollars in their rent.
The lack of rental checks is putting homeowners’ mortgages at risk.
The National Council of State Housing Agencies estimates until November 23, the rental deficit in South Carolina was $ 132-218 million.
The council estimates that at that time 99,000 to 182,000 tenants were at risk of eviction.
The CDC eviction moratorium enacted in September prevented evictions due to the pandemic (ie, the loss of a job resulting in the inability to pay rent).
While the rent was still due, the landlords could not remove their tenants because of the lost rent. The moratorium did not provide homeowners with a way to recover their rent within the normal monthly period.
Matt Foster is a managing partner at Carolina Moves, a property management company in Greenville. He also owns a property.
He estimated that six of his clients are failing to recover their rent as a result of the default, resulting in a deficit of about $ 21,000.
“Some owners have only one property. So, if you have a property, just a rental, and you have a tenant who is not paying for three months, this is stressing you because you still have to pay the mortgage payment, ”he said.
“So, you are trying to find ways to reconcile that extra responsibility without having the rent income to support it.”
According to him, the problem is exacerbated by the Christmas season, when the money that would go to rent the checks is spent on holidays or at the end of the year.
The COVID-19 relief bill passed by Congress would provide $ 25 billion in rental assistance to be distributed by state and local governments.
$ 344 million is expected to go to South Carolina.
SC Housing estimates that 122,000 tenants in South Carolina are at risk of eviction.
Chief Research Office Bryan Grady said it remains to be seen whether the federal bill will be a total fix, but action is needed.
“If you’re just talking about the situation of a family landlord, you can certainly have some substantial financial problems, as well as landlords who are serving low-income families,” he said.
It is unclear whether or when President Trump will sign the bill.
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