The Apartment Blogger

An article for property owners, property managers and Sec. 8 voucher holders.

Unfortunately, Section 8 voucher holders face many challenges while trying to secure housing. Often, property owners are hesitant to rent to someone who relies on government subsidies, or they don’t keep their property in good enough condition to pass Section 8 inspection.

The best advise I can give you, the voucher holder, is to seek out professional help in the form of a Housing Advocacy Group, of which there are a few in the Boston area such as ABCD or Home Start or use a professional service that has already pre-screened the listed properties. This will ensure that you are treated with the respect that you deserve and that you are sent to apartments that you will be welcomed in.

Often when you, the property owner, hears about Section 8 you think you might not be interested in renting to voucher holders because of some negative connotations that go along with having to use government subsidies. In my experience, I have found that most Section 8 voucher holders are regular folks that just need some financial assistance to sustain their family. And from a business perspective, a Section 8 tenant is one of the more secure ways to insure you get the rent paid on time every month since it is being paid for by a government agency.

If you, the property owner are considering accepting a Section 8 voucher, the procedure is roughly as follows. A prospective Section 8 tenant becomes interested in your unit, they tell the issuer of their Section 8 voucher about your unit and then an appointment is scheduled for an inspection. If your unit passes inspection, you sign an agreement, and that’s that.

Hope this helps,

IG

Filed under: Apartment Renting, Tips and Tricks by IG on 11.24.2007