Approximately 200,000 lucky New Yorkers will soon find themselves on the waiting list for the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program in New York City. This marks the first time in 15 years that the city has opened up applications for the Section 8 waitlist.
City officials announced on August 1st that the 200,000 lottery winners were randomly selected from a pool of 638,224 applicants. Within the first 24 hours, they received 301,044 applications, accounting for nearly half of the total number of applications. The lottery winners will receive notifications via email this week, followed by written notices sent by mail. These families will need to submit documents to prove their income and eligibility for housing.
The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program, funded by the federal government, provides rental assistance to low-income families renting from private landlords. Eligibility is based on income level, family size, and landlord willingness to accept the voucher.
Typically, if recipients of the Section 8 voucher cannot find a qualifying apartment within four months, they may risk losing their subsidy. However, applicants can request a two-month extension to find housing.
Recipients are responsible for paying their portion of the rent, which is the difference between the total rent amount and the housing subsidy paid to the landlord by the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) on your behalf. Generally, this amount is 30% of your adjusted monthly income. Additionally, recipients must cover any amount exceeding the Voucher Payment Standard (VPS).
The federal government allocated 115,000 rental assistance vouchers to the NYCHA, with approximately 96,000 already in use. Therefore, most individuals on the new supplemental list may face some waiting time before actually receiving the subsidy, as existing vouchers have already been widely distributed and utilized.
Applicants must be U.S. citizens, green card holders, recipients of asylum or temporary protected status. According to the housing authority’s published information, the annual income limits for applicants’ households are as follows: $54,350 for a one-person household, $62,150 for a two-person household, $69,900 for a three-person household, $77,650 for a four-person household, $83,850 for a five-person household, $90,050 for a six-person household, $96,300 for a seven-person household, and $102,500 for an eight-person household.
The following behaviors may result in loss of the housing subsidy: failure to report, alcohol abuse, illegal drug use, violent crime, domestic violence, eviction by landlord, failure to comply with inspection requirements, lease violations, receiving other housing assistance, fraud or bribery, and failure to fulfill duties.