The Eviction Ban Has to End Sometime – WSJ

And what about the longer term? Many parts of the U.S. face housing shortages, with price inflation that s already through the vaulted ceiling. The only real solution is to encourage more constructing, more renovating, more renting. But if a landlord has gone a year without income, and Democrats extend that into the foreseeable future, it will undermine the economic incentive to invest in getting new rental units on the market. Why bother?

Not every eviction threat ends in eviction. Tenants can leave on their own, maybe for properties that better fit their budgets. They can work out a payment plan with the landlord. But at some point the housing market must transition back to normality. The U.S. is 11 months from when President Trump s CDC first issued its eviction moratorium. Democrats would like to extend it, and for who knows how long. What would be the criteria for ever rescinding the policy? Good luck trying to get an answer.

The hard fact is that eventually the rent will come due, and tenants and landlords will have to work it out. If the moratorium is extended, back payments will continue to stack up, and the result will be an even bigger problem when the music finally stops.

via www.wsj.com