Comment Detail

Comment

Thank you for the opportunity to provide feedback on the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA)
Request for Information on tenant protections. My name is Kay Broughton and I work as a direct support provider for persons with disabilities. As you may know, housing is a huge issue in the disability community and many people with disabilities rely on section 8 housing vouchers and SSI. I urge FHFA to to create
clear, strong, and enforceable renter protections for households living in rental properties with federally
backed mortgages. Given the broad reach of FHFA’s work, any renter protections created by FHFA should
cover a significant share of renters across the nation and put America on a pathway towards stronger
protections for all renters.
Federal renter protections are needed to address the power imbalance between landlords and
renters that puts renters at greater risk of housing instability, harassment, and homelessness and fuels
racial and gender and disability inequity.
To help ensure greater housing stability, FHFA should create new renter protections for households living
in properties with federally backed mortgages, including:
1. Source of income protections to prohibit landlords from discriminating against households
receiving rental housing assistance such as Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, or Supplemental
Security Income (SSI), or local rental assistance, so that families can have greater choice about
where to live.
2. “Just cause” eviction standards, which limit the causes for which a landlord can evict a tenant or
refuse to renew a tenant’s lease when the tenant is not at fault or in violation of any law.
3. Rent gouging protections to stop landlords from dramatically and unreasonably raising rents.
4. Requirements to ensure housing is safe, decent, accessible, and healthy for renters and their families.

I know this would personally impact people supported at my agency as well as members of my own family. Being on disability severely limits rental options for people. Being denied section 8 or SSI income payment options can make the struggle to find housing lengthy and difficult especially for already disadvantaged communities. I have personally known people that ended up homeless or "couch-surfing" despite qualifying for a section 8 voucher because rental options were limited, especially in rural areas. I hope that FHFA will take steps to protect these vulnerable populations.