With the exception of the industrial sector, apartments have been weathering the COVID-19 pandemic as well as any sector of commercial real estate.
That doesn’t mean the $900 billion stimulus passed at the end of 2020 wasn’t desperately needed.
Just as questions about how long renters could continue making rent payments were growing, Congress passed the stimulus, and President Trump signed it into law.
The bill provided $300 federal unemployment assistance through March 14, 2021, and direct checks of $600 for individuals earning up to $75,000 per year and married couples earning up to $150,000 per year. Each child dependent is additionally eligible for $600.
Beyond these well-publicized economic benefits, the measure provides an enormous boost for apartments, including allocating the Treasury Department with $25 billion for a new Emergency Rental Assistance program. The National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) remarked that allowing the Treasury Department to distribute the funds was the fastest and easiest way to get them in renters’ hands.
This is the first time Congress has provided landlords with dedicated federal emergency rental assistance, according to the National Apartment Association (NAA). This assistance will help housing providers pay their bills and keep the nation’s 40 million renters in their homes.
