Do you need to pay rent in April?

The State of Oregon and Multnomah County have created rules to protect renters who have lost income as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and are unable to pay rent. Here is what you need to know if you are a renter in Multnomah County:

• YES, you still owe your landlord for rent for April.
• You have the option to postpone paying your rent for April ONLY if you have lost income as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. You will still need to pay April rent later. You will have six months from the end of the COVID-19 emergency to pay any rent payments you skip.
• If you need to postpone paying rent in April because of COVID-19, you MUST do two things:
1. Notify your landlord in writing on or before the day that rent is due. Here is a sample letter that you can use to give this notice to your landlord (on the last page of the linked document).
2. Provide documentation of your loss of income. This could be a letter from your employer, a letter from your doctor, a notice from your child’s school, or other documents explaining why your income has been reduced as a result of the pandemic.

More details and information are available from the Portland Housing Bureau.