Anyone have experience with Section 8 Housing? Looking for info

The only thing I know about section 8 is that my family is on the list and many landlords in Spokane WA refuse to do business with the state regarding section 8 for one major reason. They have varied experiences from tenants destroying the rental. The landlords become apprehensive about renting to section 8, even if they do receive a guarantee from the state that they will receive a rent check every month on time. That's what is going on here in Spokane, my experience shows that not every renter/tenant is created equal.
The other problem with section 8 is that all rentals that have a basement with a qualifying bedroom or such must meet state requirements for egress. This might be costly in the short run, but it does pay off in the long run and if you are holding property, this should not be an issue right? Popular Science has a great article and specifications for egress and I'm sure many other sites do as well.

Anyone in Spokane feel free to email me, call me, look me up and we can talk all you want, It's learning for me and that is worth a lot of gold!

Wish I could have been more help.

Bill Gallant

I'm an active participant in dealing with sect 8. I have 18 units with them. Of course it has its ups and its downs. People I think are mislead about it. I personally have not had a problem with the actual tenant, its always there friends/guests/invitees. In todays economy, I use sect 8 as my safety net. I'm guaranteed the rent on the first of the month and they direct deposit the funds. They do pay a little under market for what the rents are in the area which i don't like. For the most part, the tenants portion of the rent is always paid on time because they're afraid if they don't sect 8 will cancel them. And of course the unit that you have is always going to get the annual inspection from sect 8 and I can guarantee they will find something wrong that they say you are responsible for. You must then fix it within 30 days so they can come back out to make sure that you have. If you have not made the repairs they put the unit into abatement (No more rent till you fix it). Overall I would recommend the program.

It sounds like you are wanting to sell property through a Section 8 program. I think Section 8 is a rental assistance program only.

Al

Great response - yes, that's what I am looking to do, apartments, etc. Do you own large or small units? I'd like to start with maybe a 4plex or 8plex. I am not in a position yet to be able to grab a big apartment complex. What state are you in? and how did you decide on what properties to purchase? Where do I start as far as contacting the governing body over Section 8? Would you mind terribly if I PM you? I know this is a great niche and I would like to really investigate my options on it. Thanks!

thanks for your feedback - I never thought to look in Popular Mechanics magazine. We don't have many basements here, but SO many people have purchased homes, enclosed carports and made "mock" bedrooms out of them, that there are lots of "egress" issues that we've had to deal with.

Feel free to pm me or email me ddog_2000_us@****. I am in Ohio. Deal with my housing authority/sect 8 on pretty much a daily basis. I try to do each deal with the thought of making it sect 8 so structure it accordingly. I have tons of info, paperwork, the whole process

called the housing division today and got some good info....I emailed you directly, so hopefully we can connect. thanks!!

I have had a section 8 rental before. If it is a multi unit all utilities MUST be from seperate meters if you want them to pay. If not your hands are tied legally. As for s/f not an issue. One plus is you always have your check on the first and in full. Down side is you can only raise rents per county instructions. For your particular county you must contact them and they will send you all details required. Tax wise you will be able to deduct a portion of rents at tax time due to it being assisted housing. Hope this helps:) P.s. I strongly incourage you or your prop management to run both criminal, background and credit checks on these props due to the tenants that tend to apply. Good luck!
Angie

I agree with almost all of the comments on here with an exception of a few. All section 8 offices run a background check already to be on their program #1 and all the tenants on section 8 arent bad by far but ALOT of them dont have good credit which sometimes to beexpected. maybe you can offer them a credit buiding or correction program with renting out your home we have do that before and they tend to like that. Also when you get your homes take down a fyer to all the surrounding section 8 counties in your area they will let you post. (they do in colorado) and dont just put it in one count because alot of the tenants might be planning on moving their section 8 voucher or certificate from one county to another. Always list it in the paper stating section 8 accepted you will get a big response, espically with the economy the way it is LOTS of people are applying for it.

Hope this helps

Frankly,Section 8 scares me.

When I attended the HANO [Housing Authority of New Orleans] Landlord's conference here, I posed the question whether I should replace the carpets or use laminate or vinyl tile.

The answer by the moderator was, "Might as well use vinyl tiles, as most Section 8 tenants don't have vaccum cleaners".

I know, that is just one issue, but a real caveat.

Then I read the manual they gave me: "Landlord Information & Advisory Guide".

Get involved with your local Section 8 Program. Attend the conferences, read the material, make up your own mind.

In talking with other HANO landlords the determination was:

"If you are in a 'poor' neighborhood, your investment is way below the value, you can't rent it at the market, and, it is indestructable, "they" will destroy it anyway". [and section 8 will make you repair it].

Please dont let Section 8 scare you. It is up to you to screen the tenants with the vouchers, so by all means be choosy. It is a good idea to get a property manager that has a lot of experience with Section 8 tenants.

Let tenants know that no one else can live there (boyfriends etc.)or they will lose their voucher. Also expect maintenance to be higher than a normal rental in general, as many of them are clueless on how to do even simple repairs.

Tenants are tenants are tenants. Some are good, some bad, some terrible. Section 8 is about the same as renting to a normal tenant in a borderline area. It is a good thing to keep in mind that this is your strategy and so not go overboard on rehab. However, in a market like this, there are more choices than ever for the tenants, so a hole will not likely rent.

As far as tax credits, I know in Indy there are several outfits that use the sale of tax credits gotten for affordable housing to fund their rehabs. However, the rent they will get will be well below market.

Hi Rbncowgirl,
Of course every state regulations are different. But in my state they offer vouchers to help with downpayments towards a purchase for qualified section 8 renters for home ownership. There are alot of renters who work and recieve a housing grant. Alot are single working parents and married couples as well that meet housing assistant requirements. Assistance is based on their income and family size. There are many different housing grants classified under section 8. It is possible to have a section 8 renter with good credit and be able to qualify for a mortgage. There are agencies that help low income families establish a good credit to work towards a future home purchase. The grant does have restrictions to the resale of the property. But they can offer assistant to convert a section 8 renter into a buyer. Check with the Board of social services and the section 8 dept. in your county. Some townships also offer grants towards the purchase of a home, check with your municipal offices. Continued success..........Lubertha

We are living on section eight at a local apartment complex and I want to use Dean's Program to get out of here into a real house! My wife is telling me not to do ANYTHING with this waste of time real estate because we don't have money and don't have any place to go if we end up on the streets. I need to know from someone - Am I allowed to do ANY real estate investing at all? Is there a limit to the amount of real property I can buy and hold before I get into real trouble? I am going to network on my end and I hope there are others out there who have had a similar problem, Thanks everyone.

Bill G.

"There is no such thing as failure, only failing to act!"

I ran into a great section 8 housing deal in Pittsburgh that I would be willing to share with someone. I have no eperience with section 8 housing so it makes me nervous but if you are interested in this deal it is 33 units in 5 apartments. The owner is willing to finance part of the deal which makes it attractive. If anyone is interested drop me a note and I can give you the details. The owner wants to retire and is selling half of his part in a corporation. Their is an option to purchase the other units in this corporation as well.

I have a house that is not renting. I am getting lots of calls from potential tenants asking if I take section 8 vouchers. How much of a process is it to get section 8 approved? It is a nice, clean 1300 square foot, 4 bedroom 2 bath home on a family friendly cole de sac. I can imagine a single parent struggling to afford all that is needed to bring up the kids. It is in a good school district. I am not sure why it is not renting. As I understand it the amount of the assistance will depend on the income of the recipient. So I could end up with a good tenant that just does not make much money. Am I thinking about this correctly? My second house purchase.