Section 8 Rental Assistance

The Housing Choice Voucher Program allows you to choose a house or apartment owned by a participating landlord in a neighborhood of your choice.  It may be where you are living now or somewhere else in the Clark County area or through portability anywhere in the United States.  You will be required to pay a portion of the monthly rent based on the amount of your family's income and the Housing Authority will pay the difference.  The Housing Authority will also be responsible for making sure that your unit meets and continues to meet Housing Quality Standards by making periodic inspections.

The Section 8 Application procedure is done by a lottery style drawing.  The opening and closing dates are advertised in the local media and website.  During these times, those seeking Section 8 assistance are invited to personally appear at the office of the Housing Authority to fill out a lottery ticket. Lottery tickets are limited to one per household.  Lottery tickets will be drawn at random from the drawing barrel and are announced publicly. 

In order to qualify for Section 8 rental assistance the combined annual income of the adults (18 years or older) in your household (you and the people who live or will be living with you) must be less than the annual amounts established by HUD  as "very low income".

Annual Income Limits to Qualify for Section 8.

Ranking and Preferences:  Generally, you will be ranked on the waiting list according to the date and time that you applied for housing assistance.  (Exceptions are made for persons claiming the Veterans Preference.)  One ranking point is given to families with one or more of the following circumstances.  Definition of Preferences

• Veterans Preference

Persons who earn too much income to qualify for Section 8 Assistance may still qualify for Public Housing or Other Affordable Rental Programs if the family earns less than the annual amounts established by HUD as "low income".  The Authority is especially interested in renting to gainfully employed families.

Sometimes applicants who qualify in the income category may be denied assistance for the following reasons:

• A household member has a police record which indicates drug activity or other criminal (felony) violations.
• The head of household has a rental history showing non-payment of rent, lease violations, destruction of property.
• A household member owes money to another housing authority.

Generally our applicants must wait at least six months and as much as three years from the date of application before housing assistance can be provided.  Our waiting list includes many families who need housing assistance.  However, we are able to house only 15 to 30 new families per month from all programs.

Click on the following link for more information on the  Section 8 Choice Voucher Program.  This information was written by NAHRO (National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials). 

The National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) is the oldest and largest membership organization in the United States devoted to affordable housing and community development.  NAHRO represents more than 5,600 individuals, including approximately 2, 500 local housing agencies.  NAHRO member agencies own or manage more than 1,308,000 units in public housing, representing approximately 95 percent of all public housing in the United States.  In addition, NAHRO membership administers more than 1.4 million or 93 percent of Section 8 Vouchers.

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