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List of Coronavirus Mortgage Relief and Rental Assistance Programs

Last updated 03/08/2024 by

Andrew Latham
The coronavirus pandemic is putting the jobs of millions of workers at risk. Last week alone 3.3 million people filed for unemployment. One of the main concerns is how people will take care of their mortgage and rent payments if they lose their jobs or see cuts in their hours and wages. This article provides a list of coronavirus mortgage relief programs available to homeowners and renters.
The federal government and states have taken significant steps to protect homeowners and renters from foreclosure or eviction. These steps include suspending evictions for 60 days and offering homeowners affected by the coronavirus up to 12 months of forbearance. These measures could offer protection to nearly half the U.S. housing market.
What is forbearance? Forbearance is an agreement between the lender and the borrower to suspend debt payments temporarily. This helps lenders avoid costly foreclosures and gives the borrowers the chance to get their finances in order and catch up on payments.

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List of coronavirus mortgage relief and rental assistance programs

The list below provides more details on what aid is available and who can qualify for it. These programs are still in their early stages. They will no doubt change as the health and financial impacts of COVID-19 spreads.
This is what we know now. We will update the list as we get more information.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac offer up to 12 months of forbearance

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which oversees Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan banks, will grant up to one year of forbearance to homeowners affected by the coronavirus for up to 12 months due to hardship (source).
This foreclosure and eviction suspension allows homeowners with an Enterprise-backed mortgage to stay in their homes during this national emergency.” — FHFA Director Mark Calabria
“This foreclosure and eviction suspension allows homeowners with an Enterprise-backed mortgage to stay in their homes during this national emergency,” said Mark Calabria, Director of the FHFA. “As a reminder, borrowers affected by the coronavirus who are having difficulty paying their mortgage should reach out to their mortgage servicers as soon as possible. The Enterprises are working with mortgage servicers to ensure that borrowers facing hardship because of the coronavirus can get assistance.”
The FHFA’s move could potentially apply to the 28 million homeowners — about 44% of the single-family mortgage market –with mortgages backed by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. This mortgage relief program will provide immediate assistance to the approximately 180,000 homeowners who are currently delinquent and in some stage of the foreclosure process.

Mortgage relief also available for owners of multifamily properties

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has instructed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to offer multifamily property owners mortgage forbearance if they, in turn, suspend all evictions for renters unable to pay rent due to the impact of coronavirus. The eviction suspensions apply for the duration of the forbearance (source).
Renters should not have to worry about being evicted from their home, and property owners should not have to worry about losing their building, due to the coronavirus.”– Mark Calabria
“Renters should not have to worry about being evicted from their home, and property owners should not have to worry about losing their building, due to the coronavirus. The multifamily forbearance and eviction suspension offered by the Enterprises (i.e. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae) should bring peace of mind to millions of families during this uncertain and difficult time,” said Director Mark Calabria. “The Enterprises are working with mortgage servicers to ensure that these programs are implemented immediately so that property owners and renters experiencing hardship because of the coronavirus can get the assistance they need.”

Federal Housing Administration suspends foreclosures and evictions

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) instructed the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) to stop all foreclosures and evictions for single-family homeowners during the next two months. This applies to homeowners with FHA-insured Title II Single Family forward and Home Equity Conversion (reverse) mortgages (source).
The halting of all foreclosure actions and evictions for the next 60 days will provide homeowners with some peace of mind during these trying times.” — FHA Commissioner Brian Montgomery
“Today’s actions will allow households who have an FHA-insured mortgage to meet the challenges of COVID-19 without fear of losing their homes, and help steady market concerns,” said HUD Secretary Ben Carson. “The health and safety of the American people is of the utmost importance to the Department, and the halting of all foreclosure actions and evictions for the next 60 days will provide homeowners with some peace of mind during these trying times.”
“This is an uncertain time for many Americans, particularly those who could experience a loss of income. As such, we want to provide FHA borrower households with some immediate relief given the current circumstances,” said Federal Housing Commissioner Brian Montgomery. “Our actions today make it clear where the priority needs to be.”

Public Housing Agency promises to help prevent evictions

HUD still has not provided details on how public housing tenants will be protected. However, HUD Secretary Ben Carson tweeted that he was working with Congress to give HUD the authority to prevent evictions in Public Housing programs (source).
Coronavirus mortgage relief
In the meantime, Public Housing Authorities were instructed to prevent the eviction of families. In an emergency preparedness FAQ Public Housing Authorities were reminded that “assisted families in the public housing and HCV programs currently have the ability to report decreases in income. PHAs adjust the family share of the rent and granting hardship exemptions consistent with applicable regulations and the PHA’s policies. A reduction in family income is not the basis for termination of tenancy action (HCV program) or eviction from public housing. ”

State coronavirus mortgage relief programs

Several states are also taking steps to help homeowners affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The details of these programs are still being worked out. These are the state mortgage relief programs we now know about. However, we will likely see many changes in the next weeks.

California stops all evictions during the pandemic

An executive order by Governor Newsom authorizes local governments to halt evictions for renters and homeowners, slows foreclosures, and protects against utility shutoffs for Californians affected by COVID-19. These protections are in place up to May 31st, 2020, unless further extended (source).
Over the next few weeks, everyone will have to make sacrifices. But a place to live shouldn’t be one of them.” — CA Governor Newsom
“People shouldn’t lose or be forced out of their home because of the spread of COVID-19,” said Governor Newsom. “Over the next few weeks, everyone will have to make sacrifices – but a place to live shouldn’t be one of them. I strongly encourage cities and counties take up this authority to protect Californians.”

Delaware coronavirus mortgage relief

The Delaware Justice of the Peace Court paused all proceedings between landlords and tenants, which includes evictions until after May 1st, 2020 (source).

Indiana coronavirus mortgage relief

Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb signed an executive order on March 19th, 2020 that enacted housing-related changes in response to COVID-19 (source).
  • No residential eviction proceedings or foreclosure actions may be initiated during the public health emergency. However, this does not relieve the individual of obligations to pay rent or mortgage payments.
  • All public housing authorities are requested to extend deadlines for housing assistance recipients.
  • The Indiana Department of Financial Institutions and the Indiana Community Housing Development Authority are required to work with financial institutions to help promote housing stability.
These measures will last up to April 5th, 2020, but Holcomb promised to extend an additional 30 days.

Maryland coronavirus mortgage relief

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan has canceled all eviction procedures for the duration of the coronavirus pandemic. Governor Hogan also is also stopping utility companies, such as electric, gas, and water, from shutting off service due to lack of payment or from charging late fees (source).

Kentucky coronavirus mortgage relief

Supreme Court Justice John Minton ordered most court proceedings, including foreclosures and evictions, be postponed until at least April 10 to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

North Carolina coronavirus mortgage relief

North Carolina is stopping foreclosure and eviction hearings for the next 30 days (source). However, eviction orders already in the system will be carried out unless the courts intervene. courts step in; one sheriff is already requesting courts to stop eviction orders already handed down by judges, according to the Charlotte Observer.

New York suspends mortgage payments for borrowers suffering financial hardship

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo declared on March 19th, 2020, that people going through financial hardship because of the effects of coronavirus can request suspension of mortgage payments for 90 days (source).
It’s going to be hard. It’s going to be disruptive, but we will get through this together.” — NY Governor Andrew Cuomo

List of lenders offering coronavirus mortgage relief to customers

Government programs are not the only option available to homeowners who are struggling to pay their mortgage. Many banks (i.e., and nonbank lenders are also offering coronavirus mortgage relief programs to customers. Even if you don’t qualify for the protections announced by federal and state agencies, you may still be eligible for assistance. You may also be able to lower the interest rates on your account with a mortgage refinance.
Here are some of the banks offering relief and forbearance to their customers.

Lender

Coronavirus mortgage relief

AllyExisting customers can defer mortgage payments for up to 120 days. Ally will not charge late fees, but interest will accrue.
Bank of AmericaClients can request a deferral of payment, with those payments added to the end of the loan. So long as clients are up to date, it will not hurt their credit.
Capital OneAll customers can apply for minimum payment assistance, deferred loan assistance, fee suppression.
CitibankSome mortgage customers may be eligible for a hardship program through Cenlar FSB, the bank’s service provider.
Goldman SachsCustomers with personal loans can postpone payments on their loans for one month with no interest. Their loan terms will be extended by one month.
LoanDepotOffers mortgage assistance to borrowers who are ill, quarantined, laid-off, or impacted by the closure of offices or schools.
Quicken LoansQuicken Loans offers forbearance during the crisis, which won’t affect the credit of clients.
Wells FargoWells Fargo has suspended residential property foreclosure sales, evictions, and involuntary auto repossessions.

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Andrew Latham

Andrew is the Content Director for SuperMoney, a Certified Financial Planner®, and a Certified Personal Finance Counselor. He loves to geek out on financial data and translate it into actionable insights everyone can understand. His work is often cited by major publications and institutions, such as Forbes, U.S. News, Fox Business, SFGate, Realtor, Deloitte, and Business Insider.

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