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I just have a brief update today, but potentially an important one. The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection has issued a new rule that puts a new obligation on landlords, attorneys, and collection agencies seeking to evict or collect debts from tenants. The rule amends the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which applies to “debt collectors”. You can read the new rule and all the commentary on it here and can find a fact sheet on it here. DEFINITIONS OF “DEBT” AND “DEBT COLLECTOR” Under the FDCPA, “debt” is defined as “any obligation or alleged obligation of a consumer to pay...

  There’s been a lot that has happened since my last update, so let’s get right to it. BURYING THE CARES ACT First, I wanted to give a quick reminder that starting on April 1 the Kentucky Supreme Court is allowing evictions to proceed without regard to the CARES Act. That means two things: You no longer need to file a Verification of Compliance form with your eviction; and You may resume giving your usual notice to pay or vacate. For those of you in URLTA areas, you’d give a seven-day notice to pay or vacate unless your lease requires...

NOTE: HUD has issued new guidance since this article was written. Click here to see the new information.  It’s been a while since I’ve had good news on the housing front, but I’m here to bring some positivity today.  BURYING THE CARES ACT  Congress passed the CARES Act last spring in as its first wave of relief in addressing COVID-19. It covered any property that participated in a federal government program or that had a loan insured by the federal government. For those properties, it created an eviction moratorium, a ban on late fees, and a requirement that landlords give...

Greetings from a very icy Lexington, Kentucky. We’ve had some new developments that I wanted to update you about: (ANOTHER) NEW FAIR HOUSING EXECUTIVE ORDER  President Biden also signed an Executive Order asking federal government agencies to review laws that prohibit discrimination based on sex and to enforce those laws against discrimination based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.  In response, earlier today HUD issued a memo that they would be interpreting the Fair Housing Act as prohibiting housing discrimination based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity throughout the country. HUD and its state and local agencies will now be...

As we close out the first month of 2021, I hope your new year has gotten off to a good start. We’ve had some new developments in the rental industry, so here’s your update on where things stand: CDC Eviction Moratorium Likely to Be Extended  In my last update, I noted that it was almost certain that President Biden would seek to extend the moratorium beyond January 31. On his first day in office, he signed an Executive Order asking the CDC to extend their Eviction Moratorium through March 31, 2021, and they have agreed to do so.  He has...