30-Day Notification of Nonpayment of Rent in Multi-Family Housing Direct Loan Programs

The Rural Housing Service (RHS or Agency), a Rural Development (RD) agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is issuing a final rule to amend its regulations for the Multi-Family Housing Direct Loans and Grants Programs to require that Section 515, 514, and 516 Multi-Family Housing program borrowers provide tenants with written notification a minimum of 30 days prior to a lease termination or eviction action for nonpayment of rent, as statutorily required by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, (CARES Act). The "30-day notice" requirement applies regardless of the existence of a presidentially declared national emergency or the availability of emergency rental assistance funds. This rule will require this notice to include instructions on how a tenant can cure the nonpayment to avoid eviction, and how to recertify household income. This final rule also adds that the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary) may require MFH Section 515 and 514 borrowers and Section 516 grantees to issue information as provided by the Secretary during a presidential declaration of a public health emergency.