DENVER – The Colorado Apartment Association issued a set of recommendations Tuesday to its members on how to respond to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in Colorado, including creating payment plans for people who have lost their income and waiving late fees through the end of April.
Coronavirus in Colorado: Latest COVID-19 updates from March 24, 2020
The CAA’s COVID-19 task force, comprised of representatives from more than 40 housing providers and communities across Colorado, is recommending its members do the following through April 30 as the outbreak grows and more municipalities close down businesses and issue restrictions on gatherings and people’s movements:
· Create payment plan for residents that can’t pay rent because of a loss of income due to the virus
· Waive all late fees through April 30
· Avoid increasing rent
· Stop enforcing eviction orders through April 30
· Limit entry to rental properties to only emergency maintenance response
· Follow HIPAA rules to protect resident and employee privacy if a housing community sees a positive test
· Increase cleaning of common areas with CDC-approved supplies
· Follow Gov. Polis’ mandates on reduced workplace staffing and Colorado and the CDC’s guidelines for social distancing
· Continue emergency maintenance needs for tenants
· Share the Colorado Housing Financial Assistance Programs and Apartment Association of Metro Denver’s list of resources for renters
“We are encouraging housing providers to do their part to assist residents who are suffering from lost income by restructuring the rent payment plan to better match the tenant’s needs,” said CAA Executive Vice President Mark Williams. “If a resident has concerns that he or she may not be able to pay rent in full, we encourage you to reach out to your housing provider to discuss the situation as soon as possible.”
The CAA represents more than 3,000 members who own and manage more than 282,000 apartment homes in Colorado. More on their COVID-19 response can be found here.
“Our industry is 100% committed to helping Coloradans during the COVID-19 pandemic. We are a partner and a resource for housing providers in Colorado and our hope is that the housing providers in the state share the resources we have available for residents and take seriously our guidelines outlined above. By working together, we can ensure a promising Colorado rental community,” Williams said in a statement.
