SC housing advocates plead with McMaster: stop evictions during COVID-19
A coalition headed by SC Appleseed Justice Center is calling on state leaders to reinstate South Carolina’s eviction moratorium to prevent “an impending housing crisis.”
The group of 17 advocacy organizations made the appeal in a letter sent to Gov. Henry McMaster as well as state Senate President Harvey Peeler Jr., R-Cherokee, and House Speaker Jay Lucas, R-Darlington. The coalition represents a diverse array of special interests ranging from homeless services, to civil rights to legal services.
“An eviction moratorium is a sensible and measured response that will enable hundreds of thousands of South Carolinians to stay in their homes,” the coalition wrote. “This is a measure that would protect public health, prevent a housing crisis, and hasten our economic recovery.”
The state’s initial ban on evictions, which was issued by state Supreme Court Chief Justice Donald Beatty in March, ended on May 1. Renters living in buildings with federally backed mortgages were still protected under the CARES Act but that moratorium expired on July 24.
Since then, more than 2,000 evictions have been filed in Richland and Lexington counties, according to court records.
The letter cited one study from the National Low Income Housing Coalition that found more than 52% of renters in South Carolina are currently unable to pay rent and are at risk of eviction.
“We are already starting to see the numbers go up,” said Sue Berkowitz, president of SC Appleseed Legal Justice Center. “If we wait until we reach the peak then we’re already too far behind.”
The coalition recommended a ban on evictions that would last until at least 30 days after Gov. Henry McMaster’s state of emergency ends.
“As with prior moratoria imposed in this State, evictions which involve serious concerns such as property damage or criminal activity could be allowed to go forward,” they wrote in their letter.
Though 25 other states currently have similar moratoriums in place, landlords across the country have pushed back against the idea.
“Our national organization has taken the stance that an eviction moratorium does not solve the problem,” said Donald Wood, executive director of the Apartment Association of Greater Columbia, a local affiliate of the National Apartment Association. “Landlords need rent coming in to be able to pay their mortgage and other expenses. It’s not all just going to profit.”
Berkowitz said putting a pause on evictions would help families keep their homes while legislators come up with a more permanent solution that would also protect landlords.
“This would be the first step in a two step process,” she said. “But right now we’re in crisis. People who are holding on by their fingernails are going to fall. And that’s not how we get back to normalcy.”
This story was originally published August 27, 2020 at 5:00 AM with the headline "SC housing advocates plead with McMaster: stop evictions during COVID-19."
