How to Apply for a Housing Choice Voucher or Section 8 Rental Assistance

Apply through a local Public Housing Agency, not directly through HUD

The Housing Choice Voucher program, commonly called Section 8, is federally funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development but administered locally by Public Housing Agencies.

HUD states that applicants must apply through a local PHA. There are approximately 2,000 PHAs administering the program across the United States.

Use HUD's PHA directory to identify agencies serving the areas where you may want to live and then check each agency's application and waiting-list status.

Income family size and immigration status determine basic eligibility

A PHA determines eligibility based on several federal and local program requirements.

HUD's current applicant guidance identifies these core requirements:

• household annual income and family size must meet applicable income limits;
• applicants must be U.S. citizens or eligible noncitizens under HUD rules;
• the head of household must have a valid Social Security number; and
• other eligibility and denial rules, including specified criminal-history provisions, may apply.

The PHA handling the application makes the final eligibility determination.

Most applicants must be very low-income or extremely low-income

HUD income limits vary by metropolitan area, county and household size.

Generally, a very low-income family has income at or below 50% of the applicable area median income. Certain other low-income families can qualify under specific federal categories.

Federal rules also require each PHA to ensure that at least 75% of families admitted from its waiting list during the PHA fiscal year have incomes at or below the extremely low-income limit.

Do not use a national dollar amount to decide whether you qualify. Check the current HUD income limit for the area and household size relevant to your application.

Prepare income identity and household records before applying

Exact application documents vary by PHA, but HUD identifies several common types of records.

Be prepared to provide items such as:

• income documents, including pay stubs;
• bank or asset information;
• records of public benefits such as SSI or SNAP when applicable;
• proof of citizenship or eligible noncitizen status;
• Social Security cards or Social Security number information; and
• information about everyone who will be part of the assisted household.

When your name reaches the top of a waiting list, the PHA may request updated documents even if similar information was supplied when you first applied.

Public Housing Agencies cannot charge applicants an application fee

HUD guidance states that PHAs may not charge an application fee to prospective tenants.

This does not mean every later housing-search expense is free. Once you are searching for a private rental unit, a landlord may charge a lawful rental application fee under applicable lease, state and local rules.

Voucher holders may also be responsible for a security deposit unless another program or local resource helps cover it.

Voucher demand frequently exceeds the number of available subsidies

Housing Choice Vouchers are limited, and HUD warns applicants that high demand and long waiting lists are common.

A PHA may close its waiting list when it has more applicants than it can reasonably serve. A closed list does not mean the federal program has ended; it means that particular PHA is not currently accepting additional waiting-list applications.

You may need to monitor several PHAs for openings.

HUD encourages applicants to consider multiple Public Housing Agencies

HUD applicant guidance notes that because waiting lists can be long, you may need to apply to multiple PHA waiting lists.

Each PHA operates its own list, selection preferences and application process. Being on one waiting list does not automatically place you on another.

Keep a record of every PHA where you applied, your confirmation details and the contact information associated with each application.

Residency is not always required when you join a waiting list

HUD states that you do not have to be a resident of the PHA's jurisdiction merely to apply.

However, where you lived when you applied can affect what happens after you receive assistance. If you lived outside the issuing PHA's jurisdiction when you applied, the PHA may require you to lease a unit within that jurisdiction for the first 12 months of assistance before using portability to move elsewhere.

Available vouchers and local preferences affect when applicants are selected

Submitting an application does not mean you immediately receive a voucher.

HUD explains that when an eligible applicant is placed on a waiting list, reaching the top depends on factors that can include:

• how many vouchers become available;
• when or how the PHA selects applicants under its waiting-list rules; and
• any selection preferences established by the PHA, such as qualifying local preferences.

Waiting times can therefore differ substantially between PHAs and applicants.

A missed PHA notice can cause removal from the waiting list

HUD specifically instructs applicants to keep the PHA informed about changes to their:

• mailing address;
• telephone number; and
• household size.

Failure to maintain current contact information may result in removal from the waiting list if the PHA cannot reach you.

Do not rely on mail forwarding alone. Follow the update procedure required by each PHA where you have an active application.

The PHA verifies your current eligibility before issuing assistance

When your application is selected, the PHA contacts you to complete a more detailed eligibility review.

The agency verifies documents and current information about household composition, income, assets and other program requirements.

Being selected from a waiting list is therefore not the same as automatic final approval. You still must satisfy the applicable eligibility requirements when the PHA processes the case.

The PHA explains housing-search rules and family responsibilities

After required documentation is verified, the family must attend a voucher orientation or briefing.

The PHA explains how the voucher works, where it can be used, the family's responsibilities, the housing-search deadline and the steps for having a rental unit approved.

After the briefing, the PHA may issue the voucher so the family can begin looking for housing.

PHAs generally provide a 60-to-120-day search period

HUD's current tenant guidance states that an issued voucher generally provides a housing-search period of 60 to 120 days, as determined by the PHA.

The voucher can expire, so begin searching as soon as it is issued.

If you are having difficulty finding an acceptable unit, contact the PHA before the deadline and ask whether an extension is available under its policies.

Participants choose eligible private-market housing

Housing Choice Voucher participants are generally responsible for finding their own housing in the private rental market.

HUD states that eligible housing can include:

• apartments;
• townhouses; and
• single-family rental homes.

The unit must satisfy program requirements and the owner must participate in the required PHA approval process.

Submit the Request for Tenancy Approval to the PHA

Once you identify a potential unit, you and the landlord complete the Request for Tenancy Approval paperwork required by the PHA.

The PHA then reviews the proposed tenancy, including the unit, rent and program requirements.

Do not assume the voucher will pay for a property simply because the landlord is willing to rent it to you. The PHA must approve the tenancy.

Voucher housing must meet applicable health and safety requirements

The PHA schedules an inspection before approving the unit for Housing Choice Voucher assistance.

HUD requires assisted housing to meet applicable program health and safety requirements.

If the unit does not meet the required standards, problems generally must be corrected before the PHA can approve the tenancy.

The proposed rent must be reasonable for the local market

The PHA reviews whether the rent requested for the unit is reasonable compared with relevant unassisted units.

A PHA may negotiate with the landlord when necessary.

The PHA also uses its payment standard and the family's calculated contribution when determining the housing assistance payment.

The family contribution is based on income and the selected unit

HUD explains that the family's minimum contribution, often referred to as the Total Tenant Payment, is commonly around 30% of adjusted monthly income.

The PHA pays the housing assistance payment directly to the landlord, and the family pays its required portion.

If a family chooses a unit with rent above the PHA's payment standard, the family's share may be higher. At initial occupancy of such a unit, federal program rules generally prevent the family's rent burden from exceeding 40% of adjusted monthly income.

The exact amount is calculated by the PHA for the household and unit.

The payment standard is not simply a maximum legal rent

A PHA establishes a payment standard based on local rental conditions and unit size.

HUD explains that the payment standard is used to calculate assistance and is not itself a rent limit.

A family may sometimes choose a unit costing more than the payment standard, but the household may have to pay the additional amount subject to program affordability rules.

Housing Choice Vouchers can often be moved through portability

The Housing Choice Voucher program includes a process known as portability, which allows eligible families to transfer rental assistance to another PHA jurisdiction.

New voucher holders who lived outside the issuing PHA's jurisdiction when they originally applied may have to lease within the issuing jurisdiction for the first year of assistance before porting, unless the initial PHA allows an earlier move.

Always contact your current PHA before moving because the initial and receiving PHAs must coordinate the portability process.

Voucher applicants can separately report unlawful housing discrimination

Federal fair housing protections apply separately from eligibility for rental assistance.

If you believe a landlord, property manager, lender or housing provider discriminated against you for a reason protected by federal fair housing law, you can review how to file a housing discrimination complaint with HUD.

State and local laws may provide additional protections, including protections related to source of income or use of a housing voucher in some jurisdictions.

A waiting list is not an immediate emergency shelter placement

The regular Housing Choice Voucher program often has long waiting lists and should not be treated as immediate emergency housing.

If you are facing homelessness or need urgent shelter, HUD's Find Shelter resources can help identify local shelter and homelessness-services providers while you separately pursue longer-term rental assistance.

Avoid fake applications missed notices and incomplete waiting-list records

• Trying to apply directly to HUD: regular Housing Choice Voucher applications are handled by local PHAs.
• Assuming one application covers every PHA: each agency maintains its own application and waiting list.
• Paying a PHA application fee: HUD guidance states PHAs may not charge prospective tenants an application fee.
• Using outdated income limits: limits vary by location, household size and year.
• Ignoring closed waiting lists: monitor other PHAs and future reopening announcements.
• Failing to update your address or phone number: you can lose your place if the PHA cannot contact you.
• Assuming selection guarantees a voucher: the PHA still verifies current eligibility.
• Waiting too long to search after voucher issuance: the search period is generally 60 to 120 days and the voucher can expire.
• Signing for a unit without PHA approval: the proposed tenancy must pass the program's approval, inspection and rent-review process.

Find open PHA waiting lists and apply accurately to more than one when appropriate

Start by checking the current HUD PHA directory and identifying agencies in areas where you could realistically use assistance.

Check whether each Housing Choice Voucher waiting list is open, confirm the local income rules and submit complete applications to appropriate PHAs that are accepting applicants.

Keep every application updated while you wait. If selected, respond promptly to document requests, attend the briefing and use the 60-to-120-day housing-search period efficiently so the voucher does not expire.