If you need help paying rent, contact your state housing finance agency or local public housing agency office. You may qualify for government programs to get help with your rent payments. Contact your state human or social service agency:
If you need immediate, emergency assistance
To find out what other help may be available for you locally
Even if you don’t qualify to get help with your rent payments through these agencies, they may be able to provide referrals to community organizations that might offer assistance. You may also search for and contact community or nonprofit organizations in your area directly for help or referral information.
Veterans –The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) offers HUD-VASD for homeless veterans. It combines HUD housing vouchers with VA supportive services.
Seniors – The Eldercare Locator is a free service that can connect you with resources and programs designed to help seniors in your area.
Rural residents – Local Rural Development (RD) offices can help rural residents through the Rural Housing Service.
Housing Choice Voucher Program (Formerly Section 8)
What help is available?
The Housing Choice Voucher Program (formerly known as Section 8) is a program from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). It helps pay for rental housing for low-income families and people who are elderly or who have a disability.
You can find housing, including single-family homes, townhouses and apartments. Housing Choice Vouchers can pay for all or part of the rent.
Am I eligible?
Your local Public Housing Agency (PHA) decides if you are eligible for a Housing Choice Voucher based on:
Your annual gross income
Whether you qualify as elderly, a person with a disability or as a family
U.S. citizenship or eligible immigration status
Your family’s size
Other local factors
In general, your family’s income may not exceed 50% of the median income for the county or metropolitan area.
Each state or city may have different eligibility rules for housing programs. Contact your local PHA to learn about your eligibility for Housing Choice Vouchers.
How do I apply?
To apply for Housing Choice Vouchers, contact a Public Housing Agency in your state. If you need more assistance, contact your local HUD office.
You must fill out a written application or have a representative of your local PHA help you.
The PHA representative will collect information on your family size, income and assets.
The PHA will check this information with other local agencies, your employer and your bank. It helps them decide if you qualify and how much assistance you’ll get.
The amount of assistance you could get would help you afford a moderately-priced rental in your area.
The housing you choose must meet health and safety standards before the PHA can approve the unit.
After you’ve been approved for a voucher and found a place to rent, the PHA will inspect the rental before you sign your lease to be sure it’s worth the rental price.
How do I check the status of an application?
If you qualify for a Housing Choice Voucher, the PHA will put your name on a waiting list. They will contact you when it’s your turn to receive a voucher.
Where do I call for extra help?
If you need help applying for a Housing Choice Voucher or getting information about housing programs, contact your local PHA. If you need more help, contact your local HUD office.
For information by phone about any housing questions or if you need to file a complaint about your local PHA, contact the Public and Indian Housing Customer Service Center.
If you feel you have been a victim of housing discrimination, you can file a complaint.
Is there anything else I need to know?
Since the demand for housing assistance is usually greater than the resources available, you may wait a long time to get on a list and to get a voucher.
Being approved for a voucher in one city or state does not guarantee you’ll be approved somewhere else.
Public housing
What help is available?
Public housing is state-owned, affordable rental houses or apartments for low-income families, people who are elderly and people with disabilities. Public housing is nationwide and comes in all sizes and types, from single-family houses to high-rise apartments. The program is administered by The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Am I eligible?
Your local Public Housing Agency (PHA) will determine your eligibility for public housing based on:
Your annual gross income
Whether you qualify as elderly, a person with a disability, or as a family
U.S. citizenship or eligible immigration status
Other local factors
PHAs use income limits developed by HUD. The lower income limit is 80%, and very low-income limit is 50% of the median income for the county or metropolitan area where you want to live.
Because income limits and eligibility requirements vary from area to area, you may be eligible in one state, city or county but not in another. Contact your local PHA to learn about your eligibility for federal and local public housing programs, Housing Choice vouchers, rental assistance or subsidized housing.
How do I apply?
To apply, contact your local PHA. Here’s what you can expect during the application process:
Either you or a PHA representative will fill out your written application.
Your PHA usually needs to collect the following information to determine eligibility:
Names of all people who would be living in the unit, their sex, date of birth and relationship to the family head
Your present address and telephone number
Family characteristics (such as veteran) or circumstances (such as living in substandard housing) that might qualify your family for tenant selection preferences
Names and addresses of your current and previous landlords for information about your family’s suitability as a tenant
An estimate of your family’s income for the next twelve months and the sources of that income
The names and addresses of employers, banks and any other information to check your income and deductions and to verify your family composition
Someone from your PHA may visit you in your home to interview you and your family members to see how you manage the upkeep of your current home.
After obtaining this information, the PHA representative should describe the public housing program and its requirements and answer your questions.
A PHA representative will ask for documents, including birth certificates and tax returns, to verify the information on your application. The PHA may also talk to your employer and your other references. You will be asked to sign a form to authorize the release of information to the PHA.
How do I check the status of an application?
Your PHA has to provide written notification of your application’s status. If the PHA determines eligibility, your name will be on a waiting list. Once it’s your turn, the PHA will contact you.
Where do I call for extra help?
If you need assistance applying for public housing or getting information about housing programs, contact your local PHA. If you need further assistance, contact your local HUD branch office.
For information about any housing questions or if you need to file a complaint about your local PHA, contact the PIH Customer Service Center.
If you feel you have been a victim of housing discrimination, file a complaint.
Is there anything else I need to know?
Long waiting periods are common since the demand for public housing is often larger than the amount of housing available to HUD and the local PHA. A PHA may close its waiting list when more families are on the list than can be assisted soon.
Identify and complain about housing discrimination
Housing discrimination is prohibited by the Fair Housing Act.
Housing discrimination happens when a housing provider (landlord, real estate management company, lending institution, bank) acts in a way that blocks someone from renting or buying housing because of:
Race or color
Religion
Sex
National origin
Familial status (such as having children)
Disability
Discrimination covered by the Act can take many forms beyond raising prices or lying about availability. For example, the Act addresses wheelchair access in some newer properties.
File a housing discrimination complaint
If you think you are a victim of housing discrimination:
Complete and submit a Housing Discrimination Complaint Form
Contact your regional HUD office
Discrimination against LGBTQIA+ people
The Fair Housing Act does not explicitly prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. However, discrimination against someone who is lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBTQIA+) may still violate the Act or other state or local regulations. If you believe you’ve been discriminated against for these reasons, file a complaint as described above, or email HUD at LGBTFairhousing@hud.gov with general questions about LGBTQIA+ housing issues.
Source: USA.gov