Insights

As COVID-19 continues to impact businesses across all sectors of the economy, many commercial landlords have been flooded with rent relief requests over the past month. With the first of the month quickly approaching, and more rent relief requests likely to emerge, below are some considerations for landlords navigating these tenant requests.

UPDATE: On April 15, 2020, the SBA released additional guidance on frequently asked questions (FAQs) related to the new Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loans provided for in the CARES Act. As it relates to the affiliation rules under 13 C.F.R. 121.301(f) discussed below, the FAQs clarify application of the affiliation rules to franchises and businesses assigned a North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code beginning with 72, which involve accommodation and food services.

In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the IRS previously issued several notices to provide relief to taxpayers by postponing the due date for filing federal income tax returns and making federal income tax payments from April 15, 2020, to July 15, 2020, and to provide additional relief by postponing certain federal gift and generation-skipping transfer tax return filings and payments.

A significant component of the sweeping $2 trillion economic stimulus enacted on March 27, 2020, is a $500 billion Exchange Stabilization Fund, whose intended beneficiaries include mid-sized businesses with less than 10,000 employees that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The IRS yesterday announced some relief for taxpayers currently engaged in a 1031 like-kind exchange, most notably that any 45-day or 180-day deadline that occurs between April 1 and July 14 is extended to July 15, 2020. The announcement was part of a more expansive IRS notice issued in response to the economic upheaval caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and following several other deadline postponements for tax payment and filings.

The Federal Reserve yesterday announced a series of actions authorized by the CARES Act to try to stabilize the economy amidst the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, including two measures targeted at helping hard-hit small and mid-sized businesses.