SixFifty's Free Hello Landlord Tool Helps People Avoid Eviction Under New Federal Stimulus

SALT LAKE CITY, April 9, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- SixFifty, the technology subsidiary of the law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, today announced that its free Hello Landlord tool (www.hellolandlord.org) can help renters who cannot pay their rent because of the COVID-19 Emergency to avoid eviction. SixFifty launched Hello Landlord in June 2019 to help renters communicate with their landlords about problems with rental properties and missed rent payments. The tool has been updated to generate a letter that renters can use to inform their landlord (1) that they have missed or will miss a rent payment because of the COVID-19 Emergency and (2) that the new federal stimulus likely bars an eviction. The letter also asks their landlord to work with them on a constructive way forward.

The Hello Landlord letter explains that, for many landlords, evicting renters who miss rent payments is currently not an option. Under the recently passed federal stimulus bill, called the CARES Act, there is a temporary moratorium on evictions from rental properties that have a federally backed mortgage. Because the moratorium applies to properties with mortgages that are owned or secured by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, it applies to a significant number of the rental properties in the United States. The eviction moratorium took effect on the date the CARES Act was enacted, March 27, 2020, and runs for 120 days. Several state and local governments have also enacted laws pausing evictions.

"Many renters struggling financially because of the COVID-19 Emergency do not know where to begin in having a constructive conversation with their landlord when they can't make their rent payments," said Kimball Dean Parker, CEO of SixFifty. "The Hello Landlord Tool helps people to recognize the protections that are currently in place for renters and begin important conversations with their landlords so they can avoid being evicted once the protections expire."

Hello Landlord is the second tool that SixFifty has built in the last week to try and keep people in their homes during this COVID-19 pandemic. On April 2, SixFifty launched Hello Lender (www.hellolender.org), a free tool that helps homeowners who are struggling financially due to the COVID-19 Emergency to avoid foreclosure by requesting to delay their mortgage payments for up to six months, without penalties or fees, under the CARES Act. Hundreds of homeowners have already used Hello Lender in the first few days after launch.

Like Hello Lender, the updated Hello Landlord tool asks renters a series of basic questions, such as their names and the address of the property they are renting. The questions appear in either English or Spanish, depending on the renter's preference. SixFifty's automation software takes the renter's answers and uses them to generate a customized letter that the renter can give to his or her landlord. 

In addition to Hello Landlord and Hello Lender, SixFifty also launched a free COVID-19 Policy Toolset and Employee Questionnaire that allows businesses to customize COVID-19-specific telework, reimbursement, sick and family leave, and travel policies and gather information from their workforce.  Hundreds of businesses have already used the free tool.

Wilson Sonsini formed SixFifty in February 2019 to develop automated tools designed to make legal processes more efficient and affordable. SixFifty combines the expertise of one of the world's leading technology law firms with technology such as automation to make the law more accessible to people and companies. SixFifty recently released a privacy suite that automates compliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act and the General Data Protection Regulation.

Hello Landlord was originally created by SixFifty in collaboration with LawX, the legal design lab at BYU Law School, and the Innovation for Justice (i4J) Program at University of Arizona College of Law.

About SixFifty 
Headquartered in the Silicon Slopes area of Utah, SixFifty is a subsidiary of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and combines the expertise of the world's leading technology law firm, made accessible through thoughtful technology. Led by a group of lawyers and software engineers that believe the law should be easier to navigate, SixFifty streamlines complex areas of the law by providing actionable, efficient and affordable solutions for individuals and businesses. For more information, please visit www.sixfifty.com. 

About Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

For more than 50 years, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati has offered a broad range of services and legal disciplines focused on serving the principal challenges faced by the management and boards of directors of business enterprises. The firm is nationally recognized as a leader in the fields of corporate governance and finance, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, securities litigation, employment law, intellectual property, and antitrust, among many other areas of law. With deep roots in Silicon Valley, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati has offices in Austin; Beijing; Boston; Brussels; Hong Kong; London; Los Angeles; New York; Palo Alto; San Diego; San Francisco; Seattle; Shanghai; Washington, D.C.; and Wilmington, DE. For more information, please visit www.wsgr.com. 

SOURCE SixFifty

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