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| Topics and Issues | Rent reporting (15) |
The flurry of letters from consumer groups to government agencies over tenant screening-related issues continues. Last week, the NCLC issued a press release noting that it sent to the CFPB a “policy brief, Assisting Consumers with Rental Debt During COVID-19: Legal Aid and Non-Profit Attorneys Share Their Experiences, and urged CFPB Director Rohit Chopra to take action to prevent rental debt from becoming a barrier to decent housing, particularly for low-income renters and people of color.” The policy brief was also covered with a letter from the NCLC to the CFPB.
The press release adds that
Alleged rental debt can haunt a renter long after they have vacated a housing unit, whether they left because of an eviction or voluntarily moved out. Rental debt can lead to wage garnishment, harassment by debt collectors, and negative marks on credit reports resulting in lowered credit scores.
‘Negative credit report entries can present a long-term barrier to renters obtaining new housing,’ said Chi Chi Wu, staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center. ‘In fact, about half (49%) of the attorneys who responded to the survey reported their clients had trouble finding housing as a result of alleged rental debt reported on a credit report.’”
The December 2021 letter from NCLC to the CFPB follows an October 2021 letter from NCLC to the CFPB. Among other things, NCLC asked in that letter that the CFPB:
- Require debt collectors, including attorneys for landlords, to provide notice about Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) funds.
- Prohibit debt collectors from seeking payment for amounts that were or will be paid by ERAP or similar funds and require collectors to pause collection efforts, including evictions, where the collector has notice that an application for ERAP funds has been submitted.
- Clarify that states are not preempted from adopting laws to exclude pandemic-era eviction and other negative information from tenant screening reports.
- Prohibit credit reporting of rent arrears if ERAP funds have been paid or an application has been submitted, and require deletion of any such collection items.