Comment Detail

Comment

The Honorable Sandra Thompson
Federal Housing Finance Agency
Washington, D.C.

Dear Director Thompson,

Thank you for the opportunity to provide feedback on the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) Request for Information on tenant protections. We urge you to take bold and decisive action to address the power imbalance between landlords and tenants that leads to housing instability and homelessness for far too many low-income households. Implementing stronger renter protections in properties with federally backed mortgages would ensure greater security and opportunity for numerous renters, given the large scope and reach of the FHFA.

The Colorado Coalition for the Homeless (the Coalition) provides lasting solutions to homelessness through housing, healthcare, support, and advocacy work. Each year, the Coalition supports over 20,000 adults and children experiencing homelessness in their journeys to greater stability.

To help ensure housing stability, FHFA should create new renter protections for households living in properties with federally backed mortgages, including:

1. Source of income (SOI) nondiscrimination protections. The Coalition is in strong support of SOI protections that ensure that a person’s source of income does not preclude them from accessing rental housing. SOI discrimination is a tremendous barrier for people who receive public or private housing assistance, income derived from social security, pensions, annuities, state or federal disability programs or benefits, child support, alimony, foster care subsidies, disability or unemployment insurance, veterans’ benefits, and other government assistance.

According to a 2018 Coalition survey of Colorado renters, 47 percent of respondents who had been rejected from housing indicated source of income discrimination as the reason. In 2020, Colorado passed legislation (HB20-1332) which named discrimination based on source of income an unfair housing practice. Since then, local housing authorities have reported greater voucher utilization overall and increased ability to rent in high-opportunity areas. This year, the Coalition co-led a bill (SB23-184) to expand these protections, preventing consideration of credit scores for tenants with housing subsidies. These policies promote choice, ensure effective use of critical housing subsidies, and improve housing access. These policies should serve as a model for nationwide FHFA protections.

2. Just cause eviction standards. Just cause eviction requirements limit the causes for which a landlord can evict a tenant or refuse to renew a tenant’s lease to cases of nonpayment of rent, repeated or substantial violations of a lease agreement, or when a landlord intends to demolish or sell a unit. First-time homelessness increased by 83% in the Denver Metro area between 2020-2022, largely because of skyrocketing rent costs and people losing their homes because of a power imbalance between landlords and tenants. Stable housing is the foundation of healthy families and strong communities and it is far less expensive to keep people housed than it is to allow them to enter the cycle of homelessness. Housing should not be just a commodity or a place for people to store and grow wealth. Just cause eviction is critical to keeping people housed and preventing homelessness.

The Coalition supports protections against tenant displacement, particularly at lease renewals where because of market leniency, landlords raise rents simply to increase profits. These protections give tenants, especially the lowest income tenants including those on fixed incomes, greater stability and empower them to assert their rights with less fear of retaliation. The Coalition advocated for a bill (HB23-1171) during the most recent Colorado legislative session that would have created just cause eviction standards which may provide a helpful model for FHFA policies. FHFA should help reduce discriminatory housing practices and ensure stability for tenants by establishing just cause standards for properties with federally-backed mortgages.

3. Rent gouging protections. Action must be taken to prevent landlords from dramatically and unreasonably raising rents. Across the country, rent is unaffordable to people with low incomes. Research indicates that housing market conditions (rent levels, vacancy rates, availability) – not mental illness, drug use, poverty, weather, generosity of public assistance, or low income mobility – explain why some communities have higher rates of homelessness than others. In the Denver Metro area, nearly 30% of people experiencing homelessness cited inability to pay their rent or mortgage as the leading cause for losing their housing. Sudden or repeated rent hikes can be a devastating financial shock to people who are already housing cost burdened and wages simply cannot keep up with sky-rocketing rents. By implementing limits on how much and how quickly landlords can raise rents, tenants can better budget to meet their basic needs and are more likely to remain stably housed. FHFA can prevent housing instability and homelessness by implementing stabilizing rental protections for households living in properties with a federally backed mortgage.

4. Strong habitability standards. Requirements to ensure housing is safe, decent, accessible, and healthy for renters and their families are critical. Lack of access to affordable housing options forces low-income households to rent substandard housing that exposes them to risks like pests, mold, water leaks, inadequate heating or cooling systems, and overcrowding. Poor quality housing is associated with a wide range of health conditions, including respiratory infections, asthma, lead poisoning, injuries, and mental health challenges. The quality and safety of housing are also key determinants of children’s well-being and outcomes later in life. Poor quality housing is associated with increased risks of physical and mental illness and even developmental delays in children. The Coalition urges FHFA to implement strong, enforceable habitability standards to ensure tenants’ health and wellbeing.

The Colorado Coalition for the Homeless appreciates FHFA’s commitment to improving tenant protections and commitment towards housing justice. We urge FHFA to take bold action to implement mandatory, standardized protections – paired with strong enforcement – for all households living in properties with federally backed mortgages, including larger developments and smaller properties. FHFA must continue to engage tenants and directly impacted people throughout its process of establishing and implementing renter protections, and protections must be centered on economic, racial, and social equity as explicit goals. These protections are necessary to ensure that everyone, including the lowest-income and most marginalized renters, have a safe, quality, affordable, and accessible place to call home with the opportunity to thrive in their community.

Sincerely,
Cathy Alderman
Colorado Coalition for the Homeless

If you have any questions about our comments, please contact Cathy Alderman, Chief Communications and Public Policy Officer, calderman@coloradocoalition.org, 303-319-9155.