Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara

Waiting Lists

Learn more about Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara.

Closed: Santa Barbara County, California Section 8 HCV

The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara (HACSB) Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher waiting list is currently closed. It was last open for three weeks in May 2018. There is no notice of when this waiting list will reopen.

There were three ways to apply during the opening period:

  1. Complete the online application.
  2. Call the HACSB to request a paper application.
  3. Pick up a paper application at one of four locations.

Once the paper application has been completed, it must have been hand delivered to one of the four locations before the closing period.

This waiting list had the following preferences: Terminated from HCV program due to lack of funding; live, work, or hired to work in Santa Barbara County; involuntarily displaced by government action or natural disaster; HACSB tenants who require a unit transfer for health and safety reasons; households within 24 months of exhausting HOME rental assistance; veteran or spouse/widow of veteran.

Selected applicants were placed on the waiting list by date and time the application was received, by order of preferences.

For more information, visit the HACSB website, or call the office at (805) 736-3423.

Last Updated on 05/30/2018.

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About Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara

817 West Ocean Avenue, Lompoc, CA | Visit Website | (805) 736-3423

Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara provides affordable housing for up to 4,151 low and moderate income households through its Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) and Public Housing programs..

Housing Authority Jurisdiction

Low-income housing managed by Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara is located in Santa Barbara County, CA.

The Housing Authority does not serveSanta Barbara

Households with a Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher managed by this housing authority must rent within its jurisdiction.

About the Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program

As of the HUDs most recent Voucher Management System report, Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara manages 3,750 active Housing Choice Vouchers.

The following table summarizes types of vouchers managed and the monthly costs of each as of December 31st, 2021:

Standard Family Unification Tenant Protection Ported Out VASH Non-Elderly Disabled
Vouchers 3,344 90 51 25 161 15
Monthly Cost Per Voucher $1,302 $1,516 $1,239 $1,268 $1,091 $1,417
Monthly Cost $4,353,198 $136,464 $63,211 $31,704 $175,693 $21,258
Waiting List and Tenancy

According to the 2016 Q4 Picture of Subsidized Households database, the housing authority's voucher program has an annual turnover of 6% having issued approximately 585 vouchers in the past year. The average voucher holder has received housing benefits for 10 years and 2 months. According to the 2016 PSH database, persons who were issued a voucher in the preceding 12 months waited an average of 27 months on the waiting list1.

Income Characteristics

According to 2016 Q4 Picture of Subsidized Households data, the average voucher household contains 2.4 persons and has a household income of $17,990 per year. 93% of households were very low income (VLI) and 71% were extremely low income (ELI). 33% of households had wages as a major source of income, 6% of households had welfare (TANF, General Assistance or Public Assistance) as their primary source of income, and 59% of households had other income (Social Security, Disability or Pension) as their major source of income.

Heads of Household Characteristics

1% of households were headed by a person 24 years old or less, 44% were headed by a person 25 to 49 years old, 26% were headed by a person 51 to 60 years old, and 29% were headed by a person 62 years old or older. In addition, 3% of households were headed by a person 85 years old or older.

40% of households included children, 13% of which had two adults in the household. 34% of households with children have a female head of household. 74% of all households were headed by a female.

66% of all voucher households were headed by minorities with 8% of all heads of households being Black and 0% being Hispanic.

Of all households participating in the Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara Housing Choice Voucher program, 23% include at least one person with a disability. 37% of households with a head of household 61 years or less were headed by a person with a disability. 69% of households headed by someone 62 or older were headed by a person with a disability.

Bedroom Size and Overhousing

32% of voucher holders reside in a home with zero or 1 bedroom, 35% with 2 bedrooms and 33% with 3 or more bedrooms. 21% of voucher recipients are considered overhoused, meaning they occupy a rental unit larger than their family size requires.

Rent, Assistance, and Utility Allowances

The average monthly tenant contribution to rent by Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara voucher holders in 2016 was $452 and the average monthly HUD expenditure per voucher holder was $1,033. The average utility allowance across all voucher recipients is $118.

1. This Picture of Subsidized Households data field is the average wait time of those who received a voucher in the preceding 12 months. Due to special voucher programs like VASH, recent waiting list purges, or waiting list preferences the average wait time can vary significantly from one year to the next and it is entirely possible many current applicants on the waiting list have been waiting for assistance for far longer.