Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), a member of “The Squad,” appears to have collected income from various rental properties at the same time she urged her congressional colleagues to cancel Americans’ rent.
According to The Washington Free Beacon, Pressley purchased a home in Boston for $658,000 in 2019 before using it as a rental property. The property records The Free Beacon obtained show multiple rental listings for the home. It was initially listed at $2,500/month on June 11, dropped to $2,400/month on July 2, and dropped again to $2,300 on July 30th. On August 14, the listing was removed at the $2,300/month mark. It is presumed she began renting the unit for $2,300/month around August or September of 2019.
Based on the records, the couple made as much as $15,000 in rental income in 2019, The Free Beacon reported.
The congresswoman and her husband allegedly refinanced the house one year later, in August of 2020, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. The refinance required Pressley and her husband to obtain rent loss insurance, which covers a landlord for the loss of rental income in the event that the property cannot be rented.
Interestingly enough, while Pressley was allegedly collecting rental income, she was pushing an effort to cancel rent for Americans across the nation. This push was in addition to co-sponsoring the Rent and Mortgage Cancellation Act alongside “Squad” members, Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN).
The bill, which was introduced in two different Congresses, aims to repay landlords for rent he or she would have collected in non-COVID years. The text of the bill states those who fail to pay their rent would not see a ding on their credit or additional fines:
The Rent and Mortgage Cancellation Act would eliminate all rent and mortgage payments during the covid-19 national emergency, retroactive to April 1 and extending for 30 days after the national emergency is officially ended.
Under the bill, such non-payments could not result in eviction, fines, or a lowered credit score.
So how would landlords and lenders get their money otherwise owed? The bill would also create government-funded relief funds, to reimburse them for the amounts they would have normally been paid by homeowners and tenants.
The congresswoman was also very outspoken about the move need to cancel rent on social media. Throughout the course of the pandemic – both before and after she purchased the Boston home – she posted about the bill and calls for her colleagues to take action.
11 days until rent is due again. It’s past time to cancel rent & mortgage payments.
— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) May 21, 2020
We are dealing with a crisis within a crisis within a crisis.
And 30% of folx in MA have missed a rent or mortgage payment during the pandemic. #CancelRent & mortgage payments and protect our community from mass evictions https://t.co/jz5tZyk4Qa
— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) June 12, 2020
Rent is due today. Thousands of families are in crisis.
Cancel rent & mortgages.
Extend & expand the eviction moratorium.https://t.co/Ucxg8TRRe4— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) September 1, 2020
Cancel rent. Send recurring cash survival checks.
This is literally a matter of life and death. https://t.co/lVcjxzs4X8
— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) December 7, 2020
Eviction moratoriums aren't enough. We need rent & mortgage cancellation.
Congress can & must cancel payments by creating a @HUDgov fund to stand in the gap between struggling tenants and landlords.
I introduced a bill with @IlhanMN this week to make it happen. https://t.co/oVVESdp1Wl
— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) March 12, 2021
The Rent & Mortgage Cancellation Act would:
➡️ Cancel rent & mortgage payments, retroactive through April
➡️ Provide full payment and debt forgiveness
➡️ Establish an affordable housing fund
& moreProud to join @Ilhan & our colleagues to reintroduce this critical bill. pic.twitter.com/Cm1gUZbUnD
— Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (@RepPressley) March 13, 2021