An official overseeing rental assistance in Kentucky’s second-largest city doesn’t anticipate a major uptick in evictions right away. The U.S. Supreme Court last week blocked the Biden administration’s order extending the federal eviction moratorium. Lexington Grants and Special Programs Director Charlie Lanter said it is hard to determine with any certainty how many tenants will be evicted for non-payment.
“While I’m confident we have processes in place and procedures in place to prevent those preventable evictions for non-payment, it is just a little hard to predict until we see how the different landlords are going to behave and respond to this over the next month or two,” said Lanter.
Lanter said landlords filing for evictions run the risk of not seeing payments because tenants put out are not eligible for federal rental assistance. Meanwhile, Lanter noted there’s been a more than doubling of staff to process applications, some streamlining with the help of the U.S. Treasury relaxing guidelines, and a continued presence in district court.
Lanter believes communication with landlords and tenants has gotten better. He said another in-person event is being planned in the next couple of weeks. With the ongoing need for housing in Lexington, especially affordable units, the city administrator said it’s important to retain what’s available and not see property owners getting out of the business.
Here's more with Lexington Grants and Special Programs Director Charlie Lanter
