Landlords

You must be willing to rent your unit to a program participant and comply with the program regulations. The rent must be within the program limits and be comparable to other rents in the area. The unit must also pass the Housing Quality Standard (HQS) Inspection. Owners of the property must also attest to the following:

• That you are not related to the assisted family;
• That you are not debarred by HUD; and
• That you are the Owner of the property.

You may advertise the unit in our local papers or list your available unit on gosection8.com. The website is a resourceful tool for families to search for affordable housing. You may also call the LHA office and request a form to have your unit listed on our informational board.

The LHA will approve a rent by taking the following factors into consideration:

• Payment Standard
• Tenant’s Income
• Utility Allowance and who is responsible for the utility
• Rent Reasonableness Analysis

The rent must be affordable. It cannot be more than 40% of the family’s monthly adjusted income. The LHA may negotiate with the owner to reduce the rent for the family so it is in compliance with HUD guidelines.

No. It is a violation of the program. The contract rent must be approved by LHA. Side deals between the family and the landlord may trigger the following:

• Termination of rental assistance to the family.
• Disbarment of the Landlord from the program.

You may not ask for a rent increase during the initial term of the lease. You are allowed to ask for one rent increase per year as long as the request is received in writing by the LHA at least 60 days before the lease renewal date. The LHA will not approve a rent request unless it meets the rent reasonableness and HUD requirements.

Once you sign the Housing Assisting Payment (HAP) contract, the LHA will begin to issue payments for the unit. HAP may be directly deposited into your bank account. If requested, the LHA may also issue HAP via a check.

The initial term is one year.

Utility responsibilities must be outlined in the lease and contract. You must decide who will be responsible for the payment of specific utilities.

• The owner must maintain the unit in accordance with HQS.
• If the owner fails to maintain the dwelling unit in accordance with HQS, the LHA will take prompt and vigorous action to enforce the owner’s obligations.  The LHA’s remedies for such breach of the HQS include termination, suspension or reduction of housing assistance payments and termination of the HAP contract.
• The LHA will not make any housing assistance payments for a dwelling unit that fails to meet the HQS, unless the owner corrects the defect within the period specified by the LHA and the LHA verifies correction.  If a defect is life threatening, the owner must correct the defect within 24 hours.  For other defects the owner must correct the defect within fourteen (14) calendar days; the LHA may approve an extension.
• The owner is not responsible for a breach of the HQS that is not caused by the owner, and for which the family is responsible.  Furthermore, the LHA may terminate assistance to a family because of the HQS breach caused by the family.

There are seven types of inspections the LHA will perform:

A. Initial Inspection – An inspection to ensure the unit passes HQS before assistance can begin.

B. Annual Inspection – An inspection to determine the unit continues to meet HQS.

C. Complaint Inspection – An inspection due to a complaint made to the LHA by anyone.

D. Special Inspection – An inspection caused by a third party, perhaps HUD, needing to view the unit.

E. Emergency – An inspection that takes place in the event of a perceived emergency.  These will take precedence over all other inspections.

G. Quality Control Inspection – Supervisory inspections on at least 5% of the total number of units that were under lease during the LHA’s previous fiscal year.