Letters to the Editor: Banning evictions because of coronavirus is blatantly unfair to landlords

To the editor: Landlords are not abusing tenants by providing them with housing in exchange for rent. They are doing business with them. Many landlords have bank mortgages to pay. (“With coronavirus spreading, L.A. moves to ban evictions, add protections for homeowners,” March 17)

Deferring rents does not eliminate a cash flow hardship. It transfers the hardship to the title holders of the property being rented out. If owners with mortgages are sufficiently illiquid that they default and lenders foreclose, then no one is protected.

Having local authorities dictate that rents be effectively deferred for households whose incomes have been disrupted by the COVID-19 epidemic will put some landlords in default, unless owners with mortgages are protected too.

James E. Moore II, Los Angeles

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To the editor: I own some apartments in Los Angeles. If I cannot evict tenants who do not pay their rent, does this mean I still have to keep paying the mortgage and utility bills?

Who is going to compensate me when people don’t pay their rent? If I don’t pay my mortgage, I’m sure the bank will not be so forgiving with me.

Is the plan to force landlords into foreclosure? This amounts to the government stealing private property.

Carol Houston, Lompoc