In their proposed fourth coronavirus-response package, the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, House Democrats have included roughly $200 billion in additional housing assistance. The bill would significantly expand the housing assistance provided in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to include virtually all renters and mortgage holders, offering additional direct financial assistance, and expanding legal protections, write AAF’s Director of Human Welfare Policy Tara O’Neill Hayes and Director of Financial Services Policy Thomas Wade.

Their main points:

• The HEROES Act would provide roughly $200 billion in additional housing assistance, and $100 billion of the total aid would be provided for emergency rental assistance for low-income renters;
• The CARES Act provides substantial financial assistance and legal protection for many renters and mortgage-holders, but those benefits are almost exclusively available to individuals either in federally subsidized housing or with a federally backed mortgage; and
• The HEROES Act extends and expands the financial assistance and legal protections to virtually all renters and mortgage-holders, including prohibiting evictions or foreclosures for non-payment for up to one year.

Read the analysis.