There are many benefits for landlords who rent to Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher tenants. If you are a landlord interested in leasing to tenants with rental assistance, this guide will help you navigate the process step-by-step.
Before diving into everything, if you want to know more about how the Section 8 HCV program works, we recommend starting with our What is the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program? Guide.
While this program is aimed to help renters, it was also designed to benefit landlords as well. Most importantly for landlords, rent payments are split between tenants and the housing agency that manages the voucher. So, you can expect to receive timely payments from the local housing department every month for their share of rent.
Other key benefits include:
• The ability to request reasonable annual rent increases from the local housing agency.
• Free inspections that can identify maintenance needs before they become too severe.
• Gratification from providing affordable housing to renters with low incomes, who are in great need of this assistance.
Many landlords are aware of these benefits, but are still hesitant to rent to Section 8 tenants because of widespread myths about the program. Let’s spend some time addressing the facts:
• Section 8 tenants are no more likely to damage units or fail to pay rent than tenants without rental assistance. In fact, Section 8 tenants are typically steady, long-term residents who often live in their unit for several years.
• Your Section 8 tenants can be evicted for lease violations just the same as tenants without vouchers. Section 8 tenants are bound by the terms of their lease, just like any other tenant.
• Landlords are not required to rent to someone just because they have a Section 8 voucher. You may screen all tenants with your own background check, and deny them if they fail to meet your requirements. (Just be aware that in many areas of the country, you cannot deny a Section 8 tenant only because they have a voucher.)
If you are looking for an opportunity to rent to Section 8 tenants, start by reaching out to your local housing authority.
First, contact the local HUD Public Housing Agency (commonly called a housing authority), and let them know of your interest in renting to Section 8 tenants. The housing authority can provide details about the local process and what Housing Quality Standards (HQS) need to be met.
Housing authorities are not allowed to recommend a particular landlord or property to voucher holders. However, many housing authorities maintain a list of landlords who accept vouchers, and share this with their voucher households. The housing authority may also share access to websites or platforms used to advertise available units.
Many housing authorities have an office in the local area, but there are also many communities that are not served by a locally-based agency. This is often the case in rural areas. Depending on your area, you may have to reach out to a regional or state housing authority that serves your community.
You can use the Housing Authority Directory on Affordable Housing Online to find the agency that serves your area.
Now, it is up to you to set the monthly rent amount.
The Section 8 program does not dictate what rents landlords must charge. However, rents must fall at or below local Fair Market Rents (FMRs). This is the cost to rent a moderately priced dwelling in each housing market.
HUD updates FMRs for each state and metropolitan area annually. FMRs are set for different apartment sizes, ranging from efficiencies to four-bedroom units.
The local housing authority will have the FMRs for its service area. You can also look up the current FMRs for your housing market using HUD’s FMR Documentation System.
Housing authorities need to make sure that HCV tenants will be living in homes that are safe, sanitary, and in good condition. HUD has Housing Quality Standards (HQS) that must be met before an HCV tenant can rent an apartment.
You can get details about meeting HQS from the local housing authority. HQS inspections will assess the following items:
• Sanitary facilities
• Food preparation and refuse disposal
• Space and security
• Thermal environment
• Illumination and electricity
• Structure and materials
• Interior air quality
• Water supply
• Lead-based paint
• Access
• Site and neighborhood
• Sanitary conditions
• Smoke detectors
The housing authority will inspect the unit before completing a rental assistance agreement with the landlord. Once the Section 8 tenant moves in, HQS inspections will be done annually.
You would screen Section 8 tenants the same as you would an applicant without a voucher. This includes common things like checking rental or criminal histories. You should use the same criteria for all applicants to avoid renting to problem tenants.
Once a Section 8 tenant’s rental application is approved, you will need to fill out their Request for Tenancy Approval form.
The housing authority will confirm the rent falls within area FMRs. The housing authority will also make sure the rent charged is not higher than rent for any comparable unassisted units at the property.
Once a lease is signed with the Section 8 tenant and is submitted to the housing authority, you will receive a Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) contract to sign.
When the HAP contract with the housing authority is executed, you will start receiving housing assistance payments from the housing authority. Section 8 tenants will separately pay you their own portion of the rent.
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