On December 13, 2024, HUD released its Final Rule regarding the provision of a 30-day notice for non-payment of rent prior to filing an eviction for select federally-subsidized projects. This rulemaking stems back to March of 2020 when the CARES Act instituted a moratorium on evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Effective January 13, 2025, owners and PHAs must provide a 30-day notice prior to filing an eviction for a household due to non-payment of rent. Covered programs include Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA), public housing units, and supportive housing for elderly and disabled persons. Participants in the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program, the Project-Based Voucher (PBV program), and the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program are not subject to the new rule.
The notice must include:
- An itemized breakdown, by month, of the alleged amount owed by the tenant, along with any other arrearages allowed by HUD and included in the lease;
- The date by which the household must pay before a formal eviction is filed;
- Instructions on how the household can cure nonpayment;
- Information on how the household can recertify their income, request a minimum rent hardship exemption, and (if applicable), switch from flat rent to income-based rent
Put simply, if a household fails to pay rent by the due date, management must provide a 30-day notice to alert the household that management will be filing an eviction. Residents may cure the issue by paying the rent and arrearages. If payment is not received in 30 days, management may file an eviction.
The Final Rule emphasizes the ways residents and management can work together to avoid the costs and burdens of the eviction process. HUD suggests that sites provide a list of resources that may assist them in clearing balances owed and that staff remind residents of other ways to avoid carrying a rent balance altogether. O/As and PHAs are obligated to notify residents of the annual and interim reexamination processes, and residents are required to comply with these procedures. Residents also have the option of requesting minimum rent exemptions based on hardships. In the end, if all parties comply with HUD’s rules and take advantage of the safety nets afforded participants, eviction costs may be reduced drastically.
This rule does not extend protections to evictions pursued due to other lease violations or for material noncompliance. O/As and PHAs may continue to file evictions without the HUD-required 30 days’ notice for those issues. HUD will issue revised leases soon; PHAs must use them no later than 18 months after the final rule is effective, and owners will have 14 months to use them.
HUD does not provide a model form for sites to build their own 30-day notices, but reminds us that notices may need to be translated into other languages per your own Language Access Plan, and that the notice should be made in a form accessible to the tenant. Residents may still request reasonable accommodations to comply with all program rules.