CFPB: Renters at Risk as COVID-19 Safety Net Ends

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released a report warning that millions of renters and their families may suffer previously avoided economic harms of the COVID-19 pandemic as federal and state relief programs end.

The report, Financial Conditions for Renters Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic, said some government relief efforts likely helped maintain the financial stability of renters and their families, suggesting that many may be at risk as those programs expire. The report, which compared homeowners and renters, found that, on average, renters’ economic conditions were significantly more responsive to relief measures such as stimulus payments and changes in unemployment benefits. When these programs end, renters and their families may be at heightened risk

“Renters, when compared to homeowners, are more likely to be Black or Hispanic, more likely to have lower incomes and more likely to be women. They are also at particular risk of falling further behind as the nation recovers from the economic impacts of COVID,” said CFPB Acting Director Dave Uejio. “Past recessions and depressions have seen communities of color and low-income communities of all races and ethnicities left behind when the broader economy recovers. We cannot repeat that history. The CFPB is committed to helping renters and their families thrive. We must amplify and protect the modest gains renters made during the pandemic to ensure this nation’s full and equitable recovery from COVID-19.”

The report can be accessed here.