Housing Resources
Food
The City has created the #GetFoodNYC Food Delivery Program to provide food for coronavirus (COVID-19)-vulnerable and food-insecure New Yorkers not currently served through existing food delivery programs. Sign up here.
You CAN go out for groceries, but stay 6 feet away from everyone around you.
Free meals are available to every New Yorker at 400 locations including. This includes Kosher meals at select locations
text ‘NYC FOOD’ or ‘NYC COMIDA’ to 877-877 for more.
One week of free groceries are available to all New Yorkers in five boroughs at the Neighborhood Opportunity Network (NeON) Nutrition Kitchens, in partnership with the Food Bank of NYC and the NYC Young Men’s Initiative (YMI). Learn More.
Housing
Federal
There is a temporary moratorium on eviction filings as well as other protections for tenants in certain rental properties with federal assistance or federally related financing. Read carefully to be sure your property qualifies.
For renters living in “covered dwellings”, this bill provides a temporary moratorium on evictions and late fees for nonpayment of rent or other charges for 120 days after March 27, 2020.
Landlords are not allowed to issue a notice to vacate until after this temporary moratorium and they would not be allowed to require a tenant to actually vacate the unit until 30 days after the notice is given. To check if your housing qualifies as a “covered dwelling” look here.
Homeowners
Homeowners with “federally backed mortgages” are eligible for assistance under this bill. Homeowners are provided with a foreclosure moratorium of at least 60 days starting on March 18, 2020. This includes the initiation of new foreclosures as well as the continuation of foreclosures that had already been initiated; this does not include vacant or abandoned properties. They are also provided with the right to request and receive forbearance on their mortgage payments for up to 6 months, with the option to extend for an additional 6 months (total max of 1 year), as well as the option to discontinue the forbearance at any time. During the forbearance period, service providers are prohibited from charging fees or interest beyond what the borrower would have had to pay if they were making their payments as scheduled.
Homeowners should be advised that a mortgage forbearance is not a forgiveness of debt, and that they will have to work out a loan modification or repayment plan with their servicer at the end of the forbearance period to resume making payments, including all missed payments. You can look up a HUD-approved housing counseling agency here.
New York State
Landlords are not required to provide notice that someone in a building has contracted the coronavirus or died from it, and tenants are not legally obligated to inform their building's owner or manager if they get sick (4/21).
There is now a 90-day moratorium on any residential or commercial evictions, which means you cannot be evicted during this time. Housing courts will not be open until April 19th.
For homeowners, New York State has waived mortgage payments for 90 days based on financial hardship. This is in effect a 90 day grace period--those who participate in the program will still owe their payments but be allowed to pay them at a later date. There will be no late fees, no negative impact on your credit score, and all foreclosures are either postponed or suspended.
New York City
NYC has put together a centralized list of resources for tenants, property owners/landlords, and those that are seeking affordable housing or live in Mitchell Lama or Section 8 Housing.
Please visit nyc.gov/coronavirus for more information and a list of citywide resources or call 311 (212-639-9675 for Video Relay Service, or TTY: 212-504-4115).
NYCHA Housing
If you live in NYCHA housing, you may qualify for rent reduction based on rent hardship if you meet the following criteria:
There is at least a 5% reduction to your gross income (income before taxes)
Your current rent is more than 30% of the net household income
Reduction in income has lasted at least two months
How To Request A Rent Reduction
You may request what is called an “Interim Recertification” quickly and easily through the Self-Service Portal here using a smartphone, computer, tablet, or other internet-enabled device. If you do not have access to the internet, you can obtain the Voucher Holder's Request for Interim Change form by calling NYCHA’s Customer Contact Center at 718-707-7771
Full details are here
For All Tenants Under Quarantine
Con Edison will not shut off electric, natural gas or steam service due to payment difficulties resulting from the health crisis. Learn more here.
The NYC Dept of Finance offers several programs to assist property owners who face hardships in making property tax payments. Learn more here.
More information can be found here