California Executive Order N-28-20 Addresses Foreclosures and Related Evictions Related to the Covid-19 Crisis

In the ongoing Covid-19 crisis, local and state jurisdictions are enacting or considering wide ranging restrictions on foreclosures and foreclosure related evictions.  On March 16, the Governor of California issued Executive Order N-28-20, addressing a number of restrictions related to residential and commercial mortgage foreclosures and evictions.  The Order:

• Requested that financial institutions holding residential or commercial mortgages enact an immediate moratorium on foreclosures and related evictions related to reduced income from the Covid-19 pandemic;
• Removed the time limitations on protections against residential evictions found in Penal Code Section 396(f), extending those protections through May 31, 2020.
• Lifted any statutory restriction on local governments’ ability to impose restrictions on residential or commercial evictions due to a substantial reduction in income caused by the pandemic or by a governmental response to the pandemic;
• Instructed the Department of Business Oversight to engage with financial institutions to identify tools to provide relief from the threat of residential foreclosure and displacement.

Here is a link to the Order:  https://www.gov.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/3.16.20-Executive-Order.pdf