HUD Section 8 Landlord Application
HUD Section 8 landlord application process and forms explained in plain English - Learn how to become a Section 8 landlord with this step by step guide.
How to Become a Section 8 Landlord in Five Steps
1. You advertise your rental home for new tenants and you get approached by a prospective tenant on the Section 8 housing program.
2. You should screen Section 8 renters just like all other tenant applicants. While you cannot discriminate against anyone from the Section 8 program, you have the right to accept or reject the person as long as you have a valid reason - Click here to learn how to run tenant credit checks online.
3. If you decide to accept the person as your tenant, you will need to contact the local housing authority in your state for approval. You can find a complete contact list of every housing authority here.
4. The housing authority will then conduct a Section 8 inspection to see if the living conditions of your rental home meets their minimum standards. They will also verify whether the amount of rent you are charging is reasonable (compared to Fair Market Rents) and if the tenant is able to afford that rent amount.
5. You have passed all the checks above, you will be given a HAP contract (see below for more details) that has to filled in and returned to the housing authorities. That concludes the steps for becoming a Section 8 landlord.
Once the HAP contract has been received, your housing authority will send you a check (for 60 to 70%) of the rent every month. The remaining rent is to be collected from the tenant.
Essential Section 8 Landlord Application Forms
Becoming a Section 8 landlord does require more paperwork than normal, but they are highly manageable once you know which forms you'll need and their purposes:
You can download all the Section 8 forms mentioned below from this page - HUD Forms for Section 8 Landlord Application. Note that the HUD website now labels the Section 8 program as the Housing Choice Voucher Program - They are the one and same thing.
Request for Tenancy Approval: Once you choose to accept someone from the Section 8 program as your tenant (see Step 3 above), you will have to submit this form to the local housing authority in your state.
Upon receiving this form, they will contact you to arrange for the mandatory inspection of your rental home (as described in Step 4 above).
HAP Housing Assistance Payments Contract: Once your rental home passes the inspection, this HAP contract will be mailed to you. This document also contains your lease agreement. You and your tenant have to fill in this form and return it to your housing authority.
Tenancy Addendum: This is a document containing the official Section 8 rules and guidelines. This has to be attached to the tenant's copy of the lease agreement.
