Pub. 5 2020 Issue 3

4 www.ctaahq.org F rom enacting social distancing rules to changing re- newal policies, most property management companies have an action plan in place. Property management companies are implementing a variety of measures to battle against the coronavirus outbreak, including enacting social distancing rules, disinfecting surfaces more frequently and increasing the frequency of how often properties are cleaned, according to a survey by Appfolio, a property management software company. With many businesses closing and unemployment on the rise, the majority of states with shelter-in-place orders have passed regulations temporarily suspending evictions. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will offer multifamily prop- erty owners mortgage forbearance with the condition that they suspend all evictions for renters unable to pay rent due to the impact of coronavirus. As a result, 41% of surveyed property management companies report they plan to change their eviction policy due to new local regulations prohibiting evictions. In addition, 10% are voluntarily pausing evictions, while 29% more are considering such a measure. Overall, close to 90% of property management compa- nies have developed or are working on policies related to COVID-19, regardless of their location in the country, according to the survey. There are no meaningful differences between COVID-19 hot spot states such as California, New York and Washington State and less affected states. What Property Management Firms Are Doing to Mitigate COVID-19