California is paying off residents' past due rent that was accrued during the COVID-19 pandemic, giving renters a clean slate, Gov. Gavin Newsom annou

California to Pay off all Past Due Rent Accrued During COVID, Giving Renters Clean Slate

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2021-06-22 03:00:02

California is paying off residents' past due rent that was accrued during the COVID-19 pandemic, giving renters a clean slate, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced recently.

The state's $5.2 billion in funds from Congressionally-approved aid packages is enough to pay off overdue rent, according to Newsom's senior counselor on housing and homelessness, Jason Elliott, the Associated Press reported. However, just $32 million out of $490 million in requests for rental assistance through May 31 have been covered so far, according to a California Department Housing and Community Development report.

"We should do our best to get back to the starting point where we were in December of 2019. Anything other than that is taking advantage of a crisis," said Keith Becker, a property manager in Sonoma County. He revealed that 14 tenants have not paid $100,000 worth of rent.

Newsom says California will pay off all past-due rent accumulated in the nation's most populated state because of the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, promising to make landlords whole.