Chinatown Community Development Center provides instructions to tenants when COVID rent eviction protection ends on August 29

(SAN FRANCISCO) San Francisco's local eviction protections for non-payment of rent during the COVID-19 emergeney will end on August 29. Chinatown Community Development Center (CCDC) advises tenants who face hardship to seek help from housing or legal assistance organizations.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed had declared COVID-19 local emergency to expire on June 30, 2023. Under the rent ordinance, landlords of all units covered by the ordinance are prohibited from evicting tenants for non-payment of rent that was unpaid due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and from imposing late fees, penalties, or similar charges for such missed rent payments. Such eviction protections were extended for 60 days until August 29.

CCDC continues to receive calls and visits from tenants who are struggling to pay the rent, according to CCDC. "We have recently met with a family living in Chinatown who are behind in paying rent. One of the parents lost their job for over a year during the pandemic because of illness. That parent is working again, but is not earning as much money as before the pandemic. As a result, the family does not have enough income to pay for September’s rent and is at risk of eviction," CCDC said in a statement.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began in April 2020, special rules protected tenants from evictions if they were unable to pay rent because of the COVID health emergency. Over the past several months, local jurisdictions across the state started to end the COVID special eviction protections. San Francisco’s protection ends on August 29.

The COVID eviction protections were successful in keeping thousands of families and seniors safe in their homes during the pandemic. The state and San Francisco also helped pay thousands of landlords who lost rental income because of the emergency.

"Today, most tenants who were unable to work during the pandemic have been able to return to work and are now paying their rent. But not everyone has fully recovered from the crisis," CCDC said.

The end of the COVID protections still leaves tenants with basic rights before they can be evicted, according to CCDC. First, tenants have a right to a written notice that accurately states what rent is due and must be offered adequate time to pay their rent. Second, if the notice expires and the tenant has not paid the rent, the landlord must get court approval for an eviction. At each step in this process, tenants should seek advice from counseling or legal organizations about their options.

In some cases, tenants may qualify for additional help with rent. In other cases, landlords may be improperly seeking to evict a tenant and the tenant may need legal assistance.

"In the case of the Chinatown family that does not have enough income, we have helped the tenant to qualify for assistance to pay for the back rent and the family is now looking for a smaller apartment with lower rent," said CCDC. "Because of the limited funding, not every tenant will qualify for rent relief or move in assistance. We want to do everything possible to prevent people from becoming homeless."

For tenants who receive any kind of eviction notices, CCDC urged them to immediately contact a counseling or legal assistance organization.

Monolingual Chinese tenants who need more information or assistance can call CCDC Housing Counseling Hotline at 415-984-2728. Or the tenants can drop in CCDC during the housing clinic office hour on every Monday, 2pm to 4pm, or Thursday, 10am to 12pm, at 663 Clay Street, next to Portsmouth Square.