Learn more about Lake Charles Housing Authority.
Please Note: Due to the decentralized nature of affordable housing information, the information about this waiting list may be out of date.
As of September 2015, the Housing Authority of Lake Charles (HALC) is currently accepting Public Housing waiting list applications.
The HALC offers three Public Housing communities with 833 units for families and senior/disabled households, ranging in size from studios to 4 bedrooms.
To apply, visit the HALC to pick up a pre-application, located at 1903 Augusta St., Lake Charles, LA 70601, from 8:00 am until 11:00 am CT; and 1:00 pm until 3:00 pm, Monday-Friday.
Once the pre-application has been completed, it must be hand delivered to the address listed above, from 8:00 am until 11:00 am CT; and 1:00 pm until 3:00 pm, Monday-Friday.
Be sure to include these documents with the pre-application: Social Security Cards and birth certificates for everyone in the household, and photo IDs for all adult household members.
The HALC does not have a preference.
Qualified applicants will be placed by the date and time the pre-application is received.
For more information, call the HALC office at (337) 436-0640 from 8:00 am until 4:30 pm, Monday-Friday.
Applicants who need help completing the application due to disability can make a reasonable accommodation request to the housing authority via 3374394189.
Learn more about what happens after the application is submitted.
Last Updated on 07/11/2017.
The Lake Charles Housing Authority (LCHA) Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher waiting list is currently closed. It was last open for five days in July 2017; and before that in March 2014. There is no notice of when this waiting list will reopen.
Lake Charles, LA is about 130 miles west of Baton Rouge, LA.
To apply during the opening period, applicants were required to pick up an application at the LCHA office.
Once the application has been completed, it must have been placed in the self-addressed envelope and mailed.
This waiting list had the following preferences: Working, elderly, disabled.
Applicants were placed on the waiting list by date and time the application was received, by order of preferences.
The LCHA estimates it will take about 3-4 weeks to process applications.
In 2014, more than 1,500 people applied.
For more information, call the LCHA office at (337) 439-4189.
Last Updated on 07/28/2017.
800 Bilbo Street, Lake Charles, LA (337) 439-4189
Lake Charles Housing Authority provides affordable housing for up to 2,795 households through its Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) and Public Housing programs.
Housing Authority Jurisdiction
Low-income housing managed by Lake Charles Housing Authority is located in Lake Charles, LA.
Households with a Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher managed by this housing authority must rent within its jurisdiction.
As of the HUDs most recent Voucher Management System report, Lake Charles Housing Authority manages 922 active Housing Choice Vouchers.
The following table summarizes types of vouchers managed and the monthly costs of each as of December 31st, 2021:
Standard | Homeownership | Tenant Protection | Ported Out | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Vouchers | 662 | 8 | 13 | 69 |
Monthly Cost Per Voucher | $595 | $358 | $821 | $966 |
Monthly Cost | $393,955 | $2,864 | $10,674 | $66,662 |
According to the 2016 Q4 Picture of Subsidized Households database, the housing authority's voucher program has an annual turnover of 7% having issued approximately 186 vouchers in the past year. The average voucher holder has received housing benefits for 6 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 26 months on the waiting list1.
According to 2016 Q4 Picture of Subsidized Households data, the average voucher household contains 2.5 persons and has a household income of $14,930 per year. 90% of households were very low income (VLI) and 58% were extremely low income (ELI). 47% of households had wages as a major source of income, 0% of households had welfare (TANF, General Assistance or Public Assistance) as their primary source of income, and 53% of households had other income (Social Security, Disability or Pension) as their major source of income.
6% of households were headed by a person 24 years old or less, 60% were headed by a person 25 to 49 years old, 18% were headed by a person 51 to 60 years old, and 16% were headed by a person 62 years old or older. In addition, 1% of households were headed by a person 85 years old or older.
58% of households included children, 2% of which had two adults in the household. 56% of households with children have a female head of household. 88% of all households were headed by a female.
92% of all voucher households were headed by minorities with 91% of all heads of households being Black and -1% being Hispanic.
Of all households participating in the Lake Charles Housing Authority Housing Choice Voucher program, 17% include at least one person with a disability. 30% of households with a head of household 61 years or less were headed by a person with a disability. 70% of households headed by someone 62 or older were headed by a person with a disability.
19% of voucher holders reside in a home with zero or 1 bedroom, 41% with 2 bedrooms and 39% with 3 or more bedrooms. 16% of voucher recipients are considered overhoused, meaning they occupy a rental unit larger than their family size requires.
The average monthly tenant contribution to rent by Lake Charles Housing Authority voucher holders in 2016 was $331 and the average monthly HUD expenditure per voucher holder was $530. The average utility allowance across all voucher recipients is $100.
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.