People still have questions about evictions during this unprecedented time, concerning the rights of renters and landlords.
One viewer asked the problem solvers, “Will landlords get tax waivers for the time that tenants do not pay rent since evictions are not allowed by the state?”
Keri Cooper, executive director of Tulsa Apartment Association, said, “At this time, we have not heard of a tax waiver for landlords. The viewer mentions that evictions are not allowed by the state, and that is not a completely accurate statement. Most courts in Oklahoma are not hearing eviction cases right now unless the eviction is for a threat to safety, but there is not an official moratorium on evictions in Oklahoma.”
Cooper went on, “The last we heard from Tulsa County court was that they would be beginning to hear cases again after May 15th and we have heard that eviction cases that are being filed now have court dates set for June. So, it is true that evictions cases are not being heard right now, but a landlord can begin the eviction process now if they choose to, they just won’t be able to get a judgement on the eviction case until they have a court date.”
She added, “If the landlord has a federally backed mortgage or participates in one of the qualifying federal programs they are subject to follow the CARES Act. In that case a landlord cannot serve any eviction paperwork or begin the eviction process from 120 days of the passing of the CARES Act, which would be July 25th. On July 25th, they could serve a 30 day demand for rent notice, and if the tenant does not pay the rent within 30 days the landlord then could start the eviction process. For landlords that this applies to, they are granted a 90 day mortgage forbearance.”
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