In March of 2020, the city of Oakland passed an eviction moratorium as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In May of this year, the city council voted to end the program by July 15.
Supporters of the moratorium, including many tenants, fear that its expiration will put people out on the street — leading to a rise in homelessness. Data from Alameda County — which ended its moratorium in April — shows that eviction lawsuits rose from just 65 in April to almost 560 in May.
But opponents of the moratorium, like landlords, say that its end is overdue. They say that it negatively affects the housing market, and that they need money from rent in order to survive themselves; with the moratorium in place for three years, some landlords say they’re owed thousands of dollars in unpaid rent.
Even with the moratorium’s expiration, landlords cannot evict tenants for any rent that was left unpaid during the moratorium —though they can still take them to court.
The city’s rent increase moratorium — which was also passed in May — still remains in effect. That will end next July.