the Court of Appeals . The CDC , like many agencies and executive branches across the country , had been taking advantage of the expense and slowness of litigation to enact sweeping and unlawful policies , betting that legal remedies would be too slow to have any practical effect .
The invalidation of the CDC ’ s illegal eviction moratorium won ’ t change a lot for most housing providers . The eviction process is expensive and takes about 3 months in Colorado from start to finish . A housing provider doesn ’ t make any money on empty apartments . Consequently , housing providers will continue to work with residents to find ways to make their contracts work , using an eviction lawsuit only as a last resort .
However , housing providers will once again be free to rent properties to higher risk customers . One of their tragic and unintended consequences of the CDC deciding to insert itself into the nation ’ s housing markets was the unintended consequence of making it more difficult for people with poor credit to rent . When there ’ s not a reasonably predictable and reasonably priced way to get something back when you loan it out , the only alternative becomes not to lend it out in the first place . The real tragedy of the CDC ’ s foolishness and hubris is that it caused the denial of the housing to so many .
Colorado housing providers know what few others want to believe . Rent payments have remained strong and steady . 97 % of Colorado rent payments were made in the month of July 2021 . This is a continuation of rent payments being only about ½ a percentage point off normal throughout the entire period of virus-related closures and the resulting economic upheaval . Evictions have been historically low . Only 1,989 evictions actions ( 52 % of normal ) were filed during July 2021 throughout the entire state of Colorado ( population 5.8 million people ). There is neither a crisis with rent payments nor a crisis with pent-up impending evictions . However , crisis mongering and exaggerated claims of economic instability and housing displacement continue to be taken at face value .
Unfortunately , the adage that we get the government we deserve remains true . We all continue to behave like teenagers standing in a long line at a Halloween haunted house anxiously anticipating the rush and thrill of being scared . It should be no surprise that agencies like the CDC are able to resist the populist urge to artificially scare us by excessive degrees .
We have seen that there is a massive amount of money to be made in peddling panic . However , panic has a price . Our economy and the liberties we have taken for granted ( but on which providing housing depends ) will continue to be sacrificed until we get control of ourselves and stop consuming fear mongering like crack cocaine .
What the Supreme Court Ruling Means
COURTESY OF TSCHETTER SULZER , P . C .
The Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) had imposed a nationwide moratorium on evictions of any tenants who make certain declarations of financial need . The U . S . District Court for the District of Columbia has issued an Order overturning the CDC eviction order on the grounds that it is unlawful . But the District Court stayed its judgment while the Government pursued an appeal . The Supreme Court in a 6-3 ruling vacated the stay , making the District Court ' s judgment enforceable .
Accordingly , the Supreme Court has now held that the CDC eviction moratorium is unlawful and unenforceable .
In issuing its rulings , the Supreme court stated that “ the CDC has imposed a nationwide moratorium on evictions in reliance on a decades-old statute that authorizes it to implement measures like fumigation and pest extermination . It strains credulity to believe that this statute grants the CDC the sweeping authority that it asserts .”
Because of the CDC Order , courts placed most rent cases on hold where the tenant submitted a CDC Declaration .
On the local front , Governor Polis ’ Executive Order 125 was extended through October 4 , 2021 , requiring landlords to serve 30-day rent demands in scenarios where either the tenant or the landlord has applied for rental assistance , in addition to providing DOLA FAQs to tenants .
Tschetter Sulzer recommends the following :
• If you have served a rent demand ( either 10-day or 30-day ) that has now expired , proceed with filing an eviction , regardless of whether a tenant has signed a CDC declaration .
• Serve 10-day or a 30-day rent demands , depending on whether the tenant or the landlord has applied for rental assistance .
• Serve 30-day demands if you are a CARES Act covered property and located in Denver or Weld Counties .
Drew Hamrick is the Senior Vice President of Government Affairs for the Colorado Apartment Association . www . aamdhq . org SEPTEMBER 2021 TRENDS | 25