SAN DIEGO — With many businesses being asked to shut down again, people will struggle to pay their bills. In San Diego, the city and the county have offered millions of dollars in a rental assistance, but getting those funds is not a simple process.
As San Diego County heads into the purple tier on Saturday, thousands of people will continue to struggle making the rent. San Diego County’s Housing Commission partnered with the Urban League and other organizations to distribute more than $12.5 million to nearly 4,000 households. Still, there are hundreds of families waiting and the state’s eviction protection will end December 31st.
“This wave is coming. This wave is going to be felt. It’s going to be like the foreclosure crisis that we went through. Maybe not as strong but it is coming,” said Francisco Gonzalez, with the San Diego County Urban League.
Gonzalez says people should seek assistance from programs right now. Getting processed could take two or three months and the landlord also has to agree to be a part of the program.
“There’s nothing that the Housing Commission can do to essentially force the landlord to take the funds. So, in that case, the tenant has to figure out alternate methods of becoming current or start thinking about moving out,” Gonzalez said.
The Philadelphia Federal Reserve released a report saying household rental debt in the US will reach $7.2 billion by the end of the year, and with rising Coronavirus cases, many people will have to brace themselves for mounting financial trouble.
Other published reports say California’s back rent is expected to reach $1.7 billion; that’s nearly a fourth of the total rent debt in the nation.
