When the government shutdown was still in its early days, the Office of Personnel Management tweeted out a series of widely derided letters. One encouraged furloughed workers to ask their landlords about “the possibility of trading my services to perform maintenance (e.g. painting, carpentry work) in exchange for partial rent payments.”

As the shutdown continues into a third week, furloughed workers are staring down monthly rent—and student loan, credit card, car leases, and other bills. More than a third of people in the Washington region are renters, according to a 2017 census report. And in D.C. proper, nearly half spend more than 30 percent of their monthly income on rent.

“I’m grateful to not to have to live exactly paycheck to paycheck, but my cushion is almost gone already,” says Francis Nichols III, a federal pretrial services officer at the Pretrial Services Agency for the District of Columbia and Vice President of the union AFGE Local 1456. He is currently working without a paycheck. “I feel like I’m being held hostage until we get paid.”

He says his landlord in Oxon Hill, Maryland is being “pretty reasonable” by promising extensions and not charging late fees.

But how about the thousands of other property managers around the region? DCist reached out to a number of apartment complexes and property management companies in the District, Maryland, and Virginia to ask if they’ve been approached by residents with concerns and what their course of action is. Their responses varied greatly, from promising to work with tenants to an uncompromising approach.

One of the largest property management companies in the region, Bozzuto said it would work with renters on a case-by-case basis. The family-owned company owns or manages more than 100 apartments buildings in the D.C. region.

“Each individual property would certainly work with affected residents on an individual basis,” director of corporate communications and marketing Chintimini Keith told DCist in an emailed statement. “At Bozzuto, we take care of our residents like family, so we always do whatever possible to help.”

Nicholas E. Dellinger, property manager for Dorchester Towers and Arlington Blvd. Apartments in Arlington, said that they haven’t been asked for help and hope that they won’t be, but pledged to “do the right thing.”

Others are asking to see furlough letters. A spokesperson from the five-decade old WC Smith said in a written statement that “we are concerned about our residents in this situation and, as with previous shutdowns, we are working with our residents through this time. Only a few individuals have reached out to us so far; however, if a federal employee provides their furlough letter, we will waive late fees and work with them on individual payment plans.”

Kettler Management, founded more than four decades ago and manages about 20,000 rental units across the Mid-Atlantic region, said that they’ve dealt with government shutdowns before and have supported residents affected by the situation in the past. They are in the process of evaluating a number of options, including waiving late fees, deferring charges, and allowing a split payment option.

Paradigm, a property management company that owns and manages about 20 properties, including the luxury Meridian apartments, declined to comment.

Borger Management, which runs 30 properties, took a more hard-line stance. “It’s on the resident to pay on time, regardless of the situation,” a building manager told DCist on January 8. “Normal protocol will be followed.”

After this story published, a company spokesperson said that Borger had updated its policy on January 7 in the form of an email to all property managers. For those shutdown government employees who provide proof in the form of a furlough letter, Borger “will not apply late fees to anyone’s account and will not pursue any legal action, which is typically what happens when you don’t pay rent,” says Arianna K. Royster, executive vice president for Borger Management. “ We will work with those individuals in terms of when they can make payments.”

This story has been updated with additional information from Borger Management.