Skip to main content

Last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a temporary order to stop evictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, this federal eviction moratorium had been extended several times, and on August 3, the CDC extended it again for counties where COVID cases are rapidly spreading. On August 26, 2021, the moratorium ended for everyone. Unless there is a local, state or county moratorium, renters now face the possibility of eviction if they still owe back rent. And on top of that, scammers can take advantage of the panic caused by this situation.

How might they do that? Scammers reach out to renters facing eviction, promising rental assistance and pretending to be with the government. When they contact renters, they ask for bank account and other personal information, saying that they need this information so they can transfer emergency rental assistance money directly into these accounts. But instead of depositing much-needed funds, they use the information to withdraw the little that’s left.

If you’re a renter facing eviction, there are several sites and services available to you:

  • Connect with state and local organizations that are distributing federal rental assistance in their communities by visiting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB’s) new Rental Assistance Finder.
  • Check with your local court system for more details about the eviction process and your rights as a tenant. You may also qualify for free legal services through your local legal aid organization.

Remember, never give out financial or personal information to anyone who contacts you, even if they’re promising to help you. Federal aid for emergency rental assistance was distributed to states, territories, and other localities. If someone contacts you saying they’re from the federal government and they can help you with back rent, it’s a sign of a scam.

These government services aren't just for tenants. If you’re a landlord facing a loss of rental income, the CFPB also has useful information on their Help for landlords page.

And if you spot a rental assistance scam or any other type of scam, tell your state attorney general’s office right away, and then report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

Note: This post was updated on 9/2/2021 with the date the moratorium ended.

Search Terms

It is your choice whether to submit a comment. If you do, you must create a user name, or we will not post your comment. The Federal Trade Commission Act authorizes this information collection for purposes of managing online comments. Comments and user names are part of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) public records system, and user names also are part of the FTC’s computer user records system. We may routinely use these records as described in the FTC’s Privacy Act system notices. For more information on how the FTC handles information that we collect, please read our privacy policy.

The purpose of this blog and its comments section is to inform readers about Federal Trade Commission activity, and share information to help them avoid, report, and recover from fraud, scams, and bad business practices. Your thoughts, ideas, and concerns are welcome, and we encourage comments. But keep in mind, this is a moderated blog. We review all comments before they are posted, and we won’t post comments that don’t comply with our commenting policy. We expect commenters to treat each other and the blog writers with respect.

  • We won’t post off-topic comments, repeated identical comments, or comments that include sales pitches or promotions.
  • We won’t post comments that include vulgar messages, personal attacks by name, or offensive terms that target specific people or groups.
  • We won’t post threats, defamatory statements, or suggestions or encouragement of illegal activity.
  • We won’t post comments that include personal information, like Social Security numbers, account numbers, home addresses, and email addresses. To file a detailed report about a scam, go to ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

We don't edit comments to remove objectionable content, so please ensure that your comment contains none of the above. The comments posted on this blog become part of the public domain. To protect your privacy and the privacy of other people, please do not include personal information. Opinions in comments that appear in this blog belong to the individuals who expressed them. They do not belong to or represent views of the Federal Trade Commission.