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Stimulus checks will only cover 46% of rent for the average Seattle one-bedroom renter, according to a report by Rent.com.
If a couple shares a one-bedroom unit and both receive full stimulus checks, the $2,400 would cover 93% of the rent. Tacoma single renters fair better, as the $1,200 stimulus check will cover an average of 76% of the rent. In Portland, 63% of the rent will be covered.
The South has the most cities with average monthly rental fees of less than $1,200. In Tulsa, Oklahoma, average rent is $688 a month. San Francisco’s average rent is $4,704. The stimulus check will only cover 26% of rent there.
Seattle is one of the hardest hit cities in the country in terms of coronavirus-related layoffs, according to a report by WalletHub.
Unemployment in Seattle increased 87% between March 2019 and March 2020, and has ballooned 106% since January. North Las Vegas saw an increase of 68%. New York City’s unemployment went down 3.4% between March 2019 and March 2020, but increased by 18% between January 2020 and March 2020.
Landlords are also on edge in Seattle, after activists held a May Day Rent Strike Friday, according to a report by Puget Sound Business Journal. The rent strike is being led, in part, by Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant.
According to a recent Multifamily Housing Association survey, 10.6% of renters did not pay their April rent, which was up from 2.5% that did not pay in March.
A moratorium on evictions in Seattle will be extended through June 4, per a state order from Gov. Jay Inslee. The Seattle City Council said it plans to vote soon on whether to extend the ban for another six months. Inslee also banned late fees for nonpayment of rent.
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