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Sunland-Tujunga Neighborhood Council

Resources and Tips to Help You Get Through Coronavirus From Monica Rodriguez

Posted on 04/01/20

April 1, 2020 - Updates:

From Sylmar to Sunland, I've heard from many residents in our district struggling to make ends meet. For some, it's about earning the next paycheck to cover groceries, while others are saving every penny earned to pay for rent. This pandemic has uprooted our lives and impacted all of us. 
With the rent due on April 1st, many renters in our community are wondering: do I have to pay rent? The answer is yes, but if you have hardships due to the impacts of the coronavirus, there are resources available to support you and your family. Last week, I joined my colleagues in adopting important measures to provide relief for families and renters struggling during this pandemic. Among the policies we adopted, the Los Angeles City Council voted on a temporary relief package to increase protections to renters, waived late fees for nonpayments, and extended repayment periods to landlords for missed rent during the crisis. In addition, the Mayor recently ordered a halt on rent increases for stabilized units in Los Angeles, an order that impacts over 600 thousand rent-stabilized units across our city. These common-sense decisions will provide temporary relief for many in our community, and I will continue to do everything in my power to help mitigate the ripple effects of this pandemic while balancing the adverse impacts on our local economy. 
Rest assured my team and I are here to serve you during this emergency period. Please reach out to my office with any questions that you may have on any of these matters. You may call my Pacoima City Hall Office at 818-485-0600 or Sylmar District Office at 818-756-8409 for any questions on available relief programs, city services and safer at home guidelines currently in effect. 
Sincerely, 
 Monica Rodriguez
 
Relief for Renters in Los Angeles
There are resources and protections available to you from the State, County, and City during this emergency period. If you are able to pay rent, you should continue to do so. Please remember, these protections prevent evictions during this crisis, and give renters more time to recover and repay their backed rents over time. This is not rent cancellation or forgiveness. 
I joined my colleagues in taking legislative action to enact a moratorium on evictions and establish a repayment period for renters to repay backed rents to their landlords accrued during the Local Emergency Declaration. Renters can start by visiting the Housing and Community Investment Department (HCID) COVID-19 Eviction Moratorium webpage for FAQs. To read the full Ordinance, click here. Below is a summary of what these policies mean for renters in the City of Los Angeles specifically.

• Evictions due to non-payment of rent are prohibited during the Local Emergency Declaration if the tenant is unable to pay due to circumstances related to COVID-19. Evictions are also prohibited based on unauthorized occupants, pets, or nuisances related to COVID-19.  
• No-Fault Evictions are prohibited during the duration of the Local Emergency Declaration.
• Tenants and landlords can set up a repayment plan if you cannot afford to pay rent during the Local Emergency Declaration. Landlords are also required to provide written notice to their tenants about these protections.
• The repayment timeline for paying back rent was extended to one year. Renters will have one year from the conclusion of the Local Emergency Period to repay landlords for the reduced or missed rent payments during the crisis. 
• Late fees and interest are prohibited to accrue during the declared Emergency.
• Rental increases at properties subject to the Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO) will be frozen from March 30, 2020, through 60 days after the expiration of the Local Emergency Period. To check if your building is subject to RSO, click here. To read the Mayor’s Order that enacted this freeze, click here.
• Tenants or their attorneys can raise the existence of this moratorium as a defense in an Unlawful Detainer action.

Mortgage Relief for Homeowners You may be eligible for some relief during this emergency if your loan is owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. If your mortgage payment is backed by these two institutions, you may qualify for the following mortgage relief options:

• Forbearance on payment
• Halting of foreclosure and other legal proceedings
• Suspension of negative credit reporting for past due payments 

In addition to the relief secured by the Federal government, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a major financial relief package.  In which he secured support from Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, U.S. Bank, and Wells Fargo and nearly 200 state-chartered banks, credit unions. The relief package will allow eligible Californians to request the following relief:

• 90 Day Grace period for mortgage payments
• No Negative Credit Impacts Resulting from Relief
• Moratorium on Initiating Foreclosure Sales or Evictions
• Relief from Fees and Charge

Click here for details on how to apply for relief. Additionally, to determine if you are eligible for the mortgage relief secured by the State, please contact your financial institution. 



Hello, all! I just wanted to share out that the North Valley BusinessSource Center is still operating and providing free support to our local businesses. See their email below for upcoming webinars, links to resources, as well as their offer to do remote one-on-one consultations to help support our businesses in this unprecedented situation. Thank you, and take care....

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) has undoubtedly put a lot of stress on small business owners. We have been hard at work in staying up to date and informing you of available resources and tips to help your business through these tough times. While the the North and South Valley BusinessSource Center have shifted all of its operations to remote services, we are still available to local businesses.
      Recent events have encouraged businesses to adjust how they promote themselves online, visit our blog to see our top 5 social media tips for businesses to help increase sales!

• City of Los Angeles Disaster Relief Microloan
• State: https://www.ibank.ca.gov/
• Federal: Small Business Administration Disaster Loan 

We are testing new ways to connect with our clients to provide an ability to still consult on a one-on-one basis. If you would like to schedule a one-on-one consultation to help you answer questions you have through the Disaster Loan Applications be sure to click the button below!

Small businesses are being hurt the most because they don’t count on financial advantages big chain stores do. Many of them may even close down and never open again. If you are able to, please consider ordering delivery or takeout! We've compiled a handy list of some of the businesses we have assisted. Below is a list of webinars that we think might be helpful, especially during these tough times.