Housing Choice Voucher
The housing choice voucher program (formally Section 8) allows very low-income families, the elderly, and the disabled to afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the private market. Participants are able to find their own housing, including single-family homes, townhouses and apartments. A housing subsidy is paid to the landlord directly by the PHA on behalf of the participating family. The family then pays the difference between the actual rent charged by the landlord and the amount subsidized by the program.
How do I become a Landlord for the Rental Assistance program:
The Public Housing Authority has an information packet which includes what is expected of landlords, as well as Housing Quality Standard guidelines. If you agree to work with our program you will need to complete a W9 and a Direct Deposit Form. Once you have completed the required forms, your available rental property/properties will be placed on our Courtesy List. The Courtesy List is provided to all eligible families seeking a rental property.
HASA is always looking for new landlords to join our Section 8 program assistance. Please see the details below for additional information if you are considering taking our assistance as well as if you already accept our vouchers. This landlord landing page will be updated to provide program updates and changes, refreshers, and frequently asked questions as possible.
If you have questions or have information you would like to see posted, please contact
Slade Hogan at [email protected]
Kellie Pfeil at [email protected].
Please note that the HASA does not endorse or recommend any landlord. It is the tenant and landlord’s choice to enter into a lease agreement; it is the landlord’s obligation to screen the tenant and may not discriminate based on race, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, disability, or handicap.
All Landlords (prospective and current):
- Landlord Information Packet (Prior To NSPIRE)
- “A Good Place to Live” – HUD document that is given to each participant/applicant to inform tenants what a unit must have to be considered eligible for the program. PDF HUD.GOV
- Housing Quality Standards (HQS) Checklist and Commonly Failed Items Checklist
- HQS Inspection form – this document is the form that the inspector uses for each inspection whether it is an initial, special, or annual inspection. PDF HUD.GOV 2
- Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) Contract form – this document is the form that the landlord enters into with the HASA in agreement to provide assistance to the qualified family. PDF HUD.GOV 3
- Code of Federal Regulations:
- Inspection Standards (NSPIRE Updated)
- Lead Based Paint (LBP) Regulations
- In addition, this pamphlet is given to all applicants/participants. PDF HUD.GOV 4
- Courtesy List request – if you have a property you would like to add to our courtesy list, please complete this form and send to [email protected]. Please note that this list will be updated at least bi-weekly with the requests and purged at least monthly to ensure most current information is reflected. If you have leased a unit you’ve listed with us, please notify us for removal; otherwise, the property may remain listed for up to 30 days. Courtesy List
Current Landlords:
- Landlord Newsletters: the HASA sends out quarterly newsletters to our landlords to include regular updates, program changes, and tips/information from our inspector:
- Rental increase request – please note that this request must be completed and sent to [email protected] at least 60 days prior to the requested effective date. For example, if you would like the rent to increase on 6/1/2024, your request must be made using this form and sent to the inspector by 4/1/2024. Rent Increase Request
New Landlord(s):
- New landlord Direct Deposit form and W9 are available and provided upon request.
- Benefits to participation in the Section 8/Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program as a landlord include:
- Helping individuals and families in our community find affordable housing that is decent, safe, and sanitary.
- Guaranteed monthly payment on the first business day of the month via direct deposit.
- You remain in control of who you lease to: you can screen according to your suitability criteria; determine the security deposit (as long as it doesn’t exceed 1 month rent); use your lease.
- Annual inspections to ensure minimum standards are met which means we are inspecting the unit at least once per year.
If you have any questions or are interested in joining our group of valued landlords, please contact Slade Hogan at [email protected] or 325-486-3374.
NSPIRE
The HASA’s HCV program will begin using the National Standards for the Physical Inspection of Real Estate (NSPIRE) effective 10/01/2024. Previously, the HCV program used the Housing Quality Standards (HQS) linked above. This change of standards happens after 20+ years of utilizing HQS to monitor inspections of units. With this change, NSPIRE aims to ensure that all residents live in safe, habitable dwellings and to ensure that the items and components located inside the building, outside the building, and within the units of HUD housing are functionally adequate, operable, and free of health and safety hazards.
- Landlord Notice: NSPIRE Updates: This notice is to inform you of the upcoming changes and will highlight standards that the HASA felt would have the most impact on current units. Please note, this is not an all-inclusive list of all changes. NSPIRE Updates
- The HASA is hosting a virtual meeting to discuss the NSPIRE updates for all our landlords on 2/22/24 at 2:30pm via Zoom. Please see the attached invitation for more information. NSPIRE Invitation
- NSPIRE Standards: HUD.GOV 5
- HUD’s landing page for NSPIRE resources and additional information can be found here: HUD.GOV 6
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