Here Are Housing Choice Vouchers In A Nutshell

What are Housing Choice Vouchers?

In basic terms, you can think of a Housing Choice Voucher as a coupon for your rent. Just like you’d use a coupon in the grocery store to pay less for an item, you can use a voucher to pay less for your housing each month.

Unlike a grocery coupon, however, you won’t be in possession of the voucher. Your local public housing agency (PHA) will control it, and each month they’ll pay that discounted portion of the rent directly to your landlord. Once the voucher is sent, and your landlord is partially paid by the PHA, you will have to pay whatever is leftover.

Who Gets Vouchers?

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) created the voucher program primarily to help people who make a low income, are elderly, or disabled. To officially qualify, things like your income, how many people live in your household, citizenship, etc. will be considered.

Where Can Vouchers Be Used?

While many think that Section 8 vouchers limit you to living in a subsidized housing project, that’s really not the case. In fact, you can have a decent range of housing choices, depending on where you’re looking to live. For instance, you could live in a traditional apartment using your housing voucher or enjoy cheap rent in a single-family home.

Can you pick whatever property you desire? No, as it will have to meet the program’s standards. The landlord will also have to be a Section 8 participant.

If you don’t want to move, but are having trouble paying rent where you currently live, there is a possibility that you can get a voucher while staying put. Again, as long as the housing is up to standard and your landlord agrees, Section 8 may be an option that keeps you stationary.

Is the Voucher Process Quick?

As you can imagine, the demand for housing assistance from Section 8 is quite high. Certain areas with particularly high demand can have waiting lists that last years. Thus, applying to live in some locations may be a smarter move than choosing areas with extremely high demand.

After you apply for a housing voucher, you will have to wait for approval. If you qualify, you will be moved to a waiting list. Once your turn arrives, you can finally get the housing voucher to move into the home you chose.

How Do You Get a Voucher?

The HUD funds the entire Section 8 program. To apply, however, you will be working directly with your PHA. For this reason, it’s best to get acquainted with your PHA by contacting them now.

Your PHA will have information on how the program works, the income limits for the area where you want to live, and more. The sooner you contact them, the better, so you can get an ideal spot on the waiting list.