This month in affordable housing news, it was all about COVID-19—and how people were going to pay the rent. Almost four million Californians had filed for unemployment by the end of May , leading Governor Newsom to announce that “we are now in a pandemic-induced recession.”  The state acted quickly this spring to protect renters from eviction for non-payment of rent—and to help homeowners avoid foreclosure when they couldn’t pay their mortgages. But many questions remain about what happens next, especially now that the state has begun to reopen in a limited way : Eviction restrictions are now in place until 90 days after the emergency stay-at-home orders are lifted. Mortgage forbearance is available for up to 90 days. But frustration among renters continues to rise: “Renters hit new levels of rage under the coronavirus,” said the Los Angeles Times. “ Rent is due again and missing payments have landlords worrying,” said Bloomberg . “California renters and landlords face a historic financial ‘reckoning’ from coronavirus,” said the Sacramento Bee . How will the state and federal government respond? Ideas being discussed in the Legislature range from rent strikes and statewide rent forgiveness to a bill that would cut rents by 25% across the state . Affordable housing advocates have proposed a more straightforward approach: Helping struggling residents pay their rent —while ensuring the state’s already scarce affordable housing communities remain solvent when this crisis finally ends. Like a lot of issues emerging as a result of COVID-19, which approach the state will take is not yet clear.