Worried about eviction or foreclosure? Here’s up-to-date advice from Lowcountry leaders
At risk of eviction or having your home foreclosed? Local organizations, plus a recent federal policy aimed at keeping people in their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, may be able to help.
Last week, leaders from Lowcountry Legal Volunteers, Beaufort Housing Authority and United Way of the Lowcountry hosted a presentation on the recent federal bans on housing evictions and foreclosures.
On Sept. 1, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ordered a ban on evictions for tenants who meet certain criteria. To avoid eviction, they must fill out a declaration form confirming they: make no more than $99,000 a year, have suffered substantial loss of income or extraordinary out-of-pocket medical expenses, are trying to make partial rent payments, have no other housing options, and understand they must still pay rent, fees and penalties charged during the moratorium. Tenants can still be evicted for reasons other than nonpayment of rent.
The eviction ban expires Dec. 31.
It follows several other bans, including South Carolina’s moratorium on eviction proceedings, which expired May 15, and a federal ban on eviction filings from federally backed properties, which expired July 25.
Here, according to the host agencies, is how evictions work, what has changed throughout the coronavirus crisis and what you can do about it if you’re at risk of eviction or foreclosure:
The eviction process
After ending a tenant’s lease, a landlord can seek to get the tenant evicted through the local magistrate court, according to Lowcountry Legal Volunteers executive attorney Anne Caywood. The tenant is entitled to a notice of the proceedings and a court hearing.
The magistrate judge issues an order requiring the tenant to either move out immediately or explain to the court within 10 days why they should not be evicted. If the tenant contests the eviction, the court holds a hearing, and the tenant may choose to have the case heard by a jury.
If the magistrate sides with the landlord, the magistrate will order an ejection within five days, and a deputy sheriff will go to their residence and present a copy of the order. If the tenant refuses to leave the residence, or it appears to be vacant, the sheriff can enter the unit by force.
Why would a tenant be evicted?
The top reason is nonpayment of rent. A landlord can end a tenant’s lease and file for an eviction if the tenant has received five days’ written notice and still has not paid rent. Often, this “notice” is written into the lease, and no other notification is required before eviction proceedings may begin.
“Read your lease, read it from front to back,” said Angela Childers, executive director of Beaufort Housing Authority. “As a tenant, one of the best things you can do for yourself is read your lease.”
Childers noted several other reasons a tenant could be evicted or have their home repossessed:breaking the terms of the lease; failing to properly maintain the rental unit; abandoning the rental unit for 15 days after rent was due and not paid; and staying in one’s unit after the lease term has ended. For violations of the lease other than nonpayment of rent, a tenant must have 14 days’ notice before they can be evicted.
What doesn’t the moratorium cover?
Everything besides nonpayment of rent — so, yes, you can still be evicted for breaking the terms of your lease. And the ban does not apply to foreclosures on mortgages.
Hope for homeowners at risk of foreclosure
Families in homes secured by federal mortgage programs such as Federal Housing Administration Title II or Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac need not worry about being foreclosed upon for the time being, as the FHA and Federal Housing Finance Agency extended through Dec. 31 their temporary ban on foreclosures to properties with these federal loans. Certain renters in properties with FHA or FHFA mortgages are protected from eviction as well.
The foreclosure process
Like evictions, foreclosures must go through the court system before anyone can be removed from their home. In South Carolina, the lender needs to file a lawsuit.
“Generally, there’s about 120 days legally before the lender can start the process on a delinquent payment situation,” Lowcountry Legal Volunteers’ Caywood said. “Foreclosures are judicial … You’re going to want to reach out for legal advice immediately, because there are tight legal processes.”
But a lender is not required by law in South Carolina to notify the homeowner that the lawsuit is being filed. However, most mortgages require the lender to send the homeowner a “breach letter” before the process begins.
Once the complaint is filed, it must be served on the homeowner, who has 30 days to respond. If they don’t, the lender will likely get a judgment in their favor.
Fortunately for homeowners, there is space in this process for intervention. To learn more, visit the South Carolina Supreme Court’s website and Housing and Urban Development’s resources on Avoiding Foreclosure in South Carolina.
Even if they lose the case, homeowners still have one last chance to save their home: They can pay off the entire mortgage debt and stop the public sale of their home from happening. This is called the “right of redemption.”
Resources for those at risk of eviction or foreclosure
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families - An initiative of the Department of Health and Human Services, TANF offers cash grants to families in need to help them achieve self-sufficiency.
For South Carolina-specific information, see: Family Independence
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - SNAP provides benefits to low-income families to help them purchase food.
CARES Act Help with Bills - You may qualify for assistance from the federal government to pay the bills.
United Way COVID Relief Fund - According to the website, the organization will distribute all the funds it collects to help Beaufort and Jasper Co. residents meet their basic needs. This includes offering rent and utility assistance to those financially impacted by the pandemic.
SC Thrive Rental Assistance Program - Can provide up to $1500 in direct assistance to renters.
Salvation Army Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton, and Jasper - Offers rental assistance, food pantry to Lowcountry residents.
Beaufort Jasper Equal Opportunity Commission - Seeks to reduce the effects of poverty in Lowcountry. Offers utility assistance and emergency assistance programs.
AGAPE Family Life Center - Charity providing educational programs and a food pantry in Hardeeville. This semester, AGAPE is offering virtual learning for children of working parents in Jasper County.
Antioch Educational Center — Works to meet the basic needs of low-income residents in Beaufort, Jasper and Hampton through financial assistance, legal assistance and job preparedness programs.
Bluffton Self Help — Nonprofit organization offering food, clothing, financial assistance and educational programs.
Deep Well Project — Hilton Head organization offering rent and utility assistance, food pantry, home repair services and children’s programs.
Help of Beaufort — Offers emergency financial assistance to North of Broad residents, operates food pantry.
Lowcountry Legal Volunteers — provides legal assistance and representation to low-income people in eviction cases and other legal matters.
SC Legal Services - free intake line for individuals facing civil legal issues due to the pandemic. Call 1-888-346-5592.
Beaufort Housing Authority - Beaufort County’s public housing authority. Offers subsidized housing to low-income individuals and families.
Lowcountry Area Agency on Aging and the Aging and Disability Resource Center - part of the Lowcountry Council of Governments, these agencies offer services to eligible seniors and people with disabilities in the Lowcountry, including advocacy for long-term care residents and legal aid.
SCHousingSearch.com - lists affordable rental properties across the state.
This story was originally published September 20, 2020 at 5:30 AM.
