The voucher covers part of the rent amount, based on how much renters can afford. Alas, you may not live in one of these four states. There are often waiting lists to access housing vouchers, usually a few months but sometimes longer. Will accepting these vouchers help or hurt your business? U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development. I felt like I had to settle because I didnt have any options. With a bachelors degree in English from UCLA and MBA from Pepperdine University in Malibu, Geffner has impressive credentials in both story-telling and business management. But some states do. Search online (start by checking the "State Information" section of the HUD website) and contact your local fair housing agency to see if the law protects prospects and tenants based on the fact they have Section 8 vouchers. Section 8 housing is the governments largest low-income rental assistance program. Please switch to a supported browser or download one of our Mobile Apps. Copyright 2023 SuperMoney, LLC. How long it takes to be approved varies from one PHA to another. Here is a list of the benefits and the drawbacks when considering Section 8. The federal law that established Section 8 does not require landlords to participate in the program. Your listing will appear on Zillow, Trulia and HotPads. |Privacy Policy|Terms & Conditions|ezLandlordForms Affiliate ProgramVersion: 1.1233.0. Support our mission and help keep Vox free for all by making a financial contribution to Vox today. This will help you find houses and apartments that meet your family's needs and that are well within your budget. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Brokerage. Some landlords rent to Section 8 tenants by choice, and others do not have a choice. The trademarks MLS, Multiple Listing Service and the associated logos are owned by CREA and identify the quality of services provided by real estate professionals who are members of CREA. Instead, theres a five-step process. However, if you choose a product and continue your application at a lending partners' website, they will request your full credit report from one or more consumer reporting agencies, which is considered a hard credit pull and may affect your credit. The unit must then be re-inspected before it can be approved for a Section 8 move-in., Section 8 will perform an inspection once a year, usually when the tenants lease is up for renewal. This is part of a trend of Republican states preempting laws made by their more liberal cities from being enacted or enforced. Lawmaker Requires Landlords to Accept Section 8 - AAOA To apply for Section 8, contact your local PHA office or HUD office. The only way to be completely sure about whether or not you are required to accept or review Section 8 tenant applicants is to check with your local and state laws. Colorado state law does not currently prohibit local cities from passing legislation for SOI mandates. Here is what you need to know about living in Section 8 housing: No matter what, always pay . Pros and Cons of Refinancing Your Mortgage, Questions to Ask Before Refinancing Your Mortgage, SuperMoney's Student Loan Refinance Marketplace, How To Get The Best Student Loan Refinance Rates. Dealing With Section 8 Tenants | NJ Landlord/Tenant Attorney The study was conducted by calling 422 local listings that met voucher requirements, meaning apartments similar to what an average voucher-holder would rent. Martha Galvez, one of the authors of the Urban Institute study, explained why landlords are discriminating: Theres a lot of reasons why landlords dont want to accept vouchers. And, since Section 8 tenants can lose their housing voucher if they dont adhere to the terms of their lease, they may be more inclined to pay their portion on time as well. Many tenants receive rental assistance through a federal program referred to as "Section 8". Kim Reynolds (R) has put the nearly 40,000 Section 8 recipients in her state in jeopardy of getting those notices by signing a new law that ensures cities and counties can no longer protect their residents from this subtle form of discrimination. A landlord is never required to accept a tenants application, but many areas will require you to treat a Section 8 tenants application with the same respect that you would treat any other application. Would-be Section 8 tenants can attempt to extend that ban to subsidies to the landlord from the government under Section 8. Then, it will be time to landlords who will accept housing vouchers. Have questions about buying, selling or renting during COVID-19? The federal law that established Section 8 does not require landlords to participate in the program. For example, immediate family members might be prohibited while distant cousins might be okay. And in Indiana, some legislators have waged a protracted battle against bus rapid transit in Indianapolis. Once a Section 8-qualified renter signs a lease at an approved residence, the PHA pays a portion or the entirety of the rent directly to the landlord or. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. This debate is not a new one, of course. How the PHA makes rent payments to the landlord (e.g., by check or direct deposit). The Legislature, reasoned the court, was making it crystal clear that a subsidy to the landlord was different than, say, money paid to a tenants conservator. A second-generation native of Los Angeles, Geffner now lives in Ventura, California, a surf city northwest of her hometown. Private landlords must pass inspections to continue to accept Section 8. What types of tenant screening methods may be used by the PHA and/or landlord. Do Landlords Have to Accept Section 8? - FindLaw Ecuadors political instability, explained, In Sudan, the US government finally begins evacuating its citizens. These are some of the major factors of the HUD housing program that we find to be very attractive for landlords: There are always going to be some risks involved when renting a property; the same remains true when renting to tenants with housing vouchers. Renters pay their portion directly to the private landlords that accept Section 8. Landlords | HUD.gov / U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development What Are Different Types of Credit Cards? However, some state and local Fair Housing laws, such as Chicago's Fair Housing Ordinance, do prohibit discrimination based on source of income. Also, check out Every Landlord's Legal Guide, by Marcia Stewart, Janet Portman, and Ann O'Connell (Nolo) for detailed advice on housing discrimination and how to avoid fair housing lawsuits. Landlords also have certain rights, such as the right to timely rent payments and for reimbursement of costs for property damage beyond normal wear and tear. Over half (53%) of renters in urban areas said they cant afford a home in their preferred neighborhood, compared to 45% of suburban renters and 32% of rural renters. Zillow, Inc. holds real estate brokerage licenses in multiple states. *SuperMoney is not responsible for third party products, services, sites, recommendations, endorsements, reviews, etc. newsletter, According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Sign up to receive our newsletter each Friday, According to the National Multifamily Housing Council, barring localities from enacting laws that stop landlords from discriminating, barred localities from enacting certain housing reforms, looking into how widespread source-of-income discrimination is, that would have required landlords to accept Section 8 vouchers. Texas: Texas has laws that forbid cities and counties from implementing any discrimination bans such as those passed in Chicago. Through New York's Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program, the federal . Zillow (Canada), Inc. holds real estate brokerage licenses in multiple provinces. 442-H New York Standard Operating Procedures New York Fair Housing NoticeTREC: Information about brokerage services, Consumer protection noticeCalifornia DRE #1522444Contact Zillow, Inc. Of the five cities they studied, Newark, Washington, and Philadelphia all had source-of-income discrimination laws. Simply put, it was the landlords income, not the tenants. An eviction must be in accordance with local law and any additional requirements of the PHA; generally: Have more questions about being a landlord? Even in Washington, where the researchers found the least amount of discrimination, the Equal Rights Center still found 130 advertisements that stated no vouchers accepted or no Section 8 (essentially writing out we are doing crimes here), indicating that some landlords are either unaware of the law or are confident that they will get away with breaking it. 2023 RentGroup Inc. All photos, videos, text and other content are the property of RentGroup Inc. RENTALS.COM and the RENTALS.COM Trademark are registered trademarks of RentGroup Inc. All rights reserved. Have more questions about being a landlord? Hendren estimates that the lifetime benefit to a newborn child of moving from a low- to high-opportunity neighborhood is about $210,000 in additional income, or an 8.1 percent increase in lifetime earnings. Leases vs. On Friday, Reynolds and the Republican-controlled Iowa legislature enacted a bill that will have the state join Texas and Indiana in barring localities from enacting laws that stop landlords from discriminating against Section 8 renters. If you learn that state and local laws don't ban this type of discrimination, then it's up to you to decide whether to accept applicants with Section 8 vouchers. What KInd Of Credit Do You Need For An Auto Loan? There is evidence that landlords have valid (nondiscriminatory) reasons for not wanting to participate in Section 8 housing working with the government to make sure your property fits the requirements can be onerous and frustrating. Section 8 pays the majority of the tenants rent, but it does not pay all of it. The question is when is a landlord obligated to accept these rental payments from a tenant? Required fields are marked *. "Screening and Eviction for Drug Abuse and Other Criminal Activity." WA landlords continue to turn away applicants with Section 8 - Crosscut You can also contact your local PHA (see below) for more information on what the median income is for a household the size of yours in your area.