Last year I posted an update to the eviction moratorium that was in place in Southern California, particularly in our local market of Los Angeles County (see our post, “Residential Eviction Moratorium Update” Jan 2021). Since then, the state of the Pandemic has evolved and, as a result, so has the moratorium that was in place. In order to safe keep the investments of our clients’, I've been closely following the changes that have occurred throughout the pandemic. 

The latest update came in January 2022 and now the expiration is being pushed back to December 2022. But the expiration date is not the only change, so let’s go through each of the updates that landlords and tenants should be aware of in 2022. 

Update #1 – Limitations to “Non-Payment Protections” 
One of the biggest ways in which tenants were protected by the moratorium was that they could not be evicted for failing to pay their rent (“Non-Payment”), so long as they could demonstrate to the landlord (within 7 days of rent being due) that their inability to pay stemmed from financial impacts related to COVID-19. Tenants were encouraged, but are not required, to provide this notice in writing. 

Effective July 1, 2022 – December 31, 2022, these eviction protections will only be valid for households with an income level at or below 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI). Residents who qualify for these protections will have until December 31, 2023 to repay the deferred rent but, as with the original moratorium, they cannot be evicted if they fail to complete this repayment. 

Update #2 – Changes to “Owner Move-In" Evictions 
In the original moratorium, landlords could evict a tenant if they (or a qualified family member) intended to live in the vacated unit for thirty-six consecutive months AND a few other conditions were me. Beginning on June 1, 2022, however, the updated moratorium removes two of those conditions: 

1. The landlord purchased the single-family home, condominium unit, duplex and triplex at issue on or before June 30, 2021 
2. The tenant has been and is able to pay rent and does not have financial impacts related to COVID-19. 
   

Update #3 – Some Eviction Protections to Expire 
Because of how easily COVID-19 could be transmitted and because of the resulting quarantine practices that were put into place, a tenant could not be evicted for denying the landlord entry into their unit (unless entry was necessary to prevent danger/health issues, or the tenant was causing or threatening to cause substantial damage to the premises). Now, with this updated eviction moratorium, these eviction protections expire on May 31, 2022.   

Update #5 – Extension of Rent Freeze 
The rent freeze prohibits rent increases within properties in the unincorporated areas of LA County (and which have 2 or more units and have a certificate of occupancy issued before February 2, 1995) through December 31, 2022. 

Those are the main highlights from the moratorium update but you will definitely want to check out the full scope of content that can be found on the County’s website: https://dcba.lacounty.gov/noevictions/