Housing Choice Voucher Program

Previously known exclusively as Section 8, the Housing Choice Voucher Program (HCVP) is a rental subsidy program federally funded by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  The HCVP provides the assistance needed by very low income families, the elderly, and the disabled to afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the private market.  Through the program, eligible families and individuals are issued a Housing Choice Voucher, which provides recipients with rental subsidy.  Since housing assistance is provided on behalf of voucher holders, recipients are free to locate their own housing through private landlords.  Voucher holders are free to choose any housing that meets the requirements of the program and are not limited to units located in subsidized housing developments. The Housing Authority of the City of Asheville currently administers 1,355 vouchers in the Buncombe County jurisdiction. Unfortunately, at this time, the HCVP waiting list is closed and applications are currently not being accepted.  HACA offers existing Voucher holders the opportunity to achieve their goals of obtaining self-sufficiency and homeownership through its HCV Family Self Sufficiency and Homeownership Programs. 

Roles - the tenant, the landlord, the housing agency and HUD Once a PHA approves an eligible family's housing unit, the family and the landlord sign a lease and, at the same time, the landlord and the PHA sign a housing assistance payments contract that runs for the same term as the lease. This means that everyone -- tenant, landlord and PHA -- has obligations and responsibilities under the voucher program.

Tenant's Obligations: When a family selects a housing unit, and the PHA approves the unit and lease, the family signs a lease with the landlord for at least one year. The tenant may be required to pay a security deposit to the landlord. After the first year the landlord may initiate a new lease or allow the family to remain in the unit on a month-to-month lease. When the family is settled in a new home, the family is expected to comply with the lease and the program requirements, pay its share of rent on time, maintain the unit in good condition and notify the PHA of any changes in income or family composition.

Landlord's Obligations: The role of the landlord in the voucher program is to provide decent, safe, and sanitary housing to a tenant at a reasonable rent. The dwelling unit must pass the program's housing quality standards and be maintained up to those standards as long as the owner receives housing assistance payments. In addition, the landlord is expected to provide the services agreed to as part of the lease signed with the tenant and the contract signed with the PHA.