Section 8 Housing

In 1975, the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA) implemented the Section 8 Program providing rent subsidies in the form of housing assistance payments (HAPs) to private landlords on behalf of eligible families.  The Section 8 program, funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), provides housing assistance to extremely low and very low-income individuals, families, senior citizens, and persons with disabilities.  Its objective is to provide affordable, decent and safe housing for eligible families, while increasing a family’s residential mobility and choice.  HACLA, a state chartered public housing agency since 1938, now administers the second largest Section 8 Program in the country with an allocation of 44,462 Housing Choice Vouchers.

The Housing Authority has two different types of rental subsidies—tenant-based and project-based programs. Both programs have similar income-based admission requirements set by HUD.  Households with a tenant-based subsidy are issued a Housing Choice Voucher that allows them to move from one place to another.  Those in the project-based programs live in a building in which the units are subsidized.  If a tenant moves from the building, they lose their rental subsidy.  Generally, those in the project-based programs, and some tenant-based programs for special populations, are referred by various agencies and building owners to the Housing Authority, which confirms that they meet all the Section 8 eligibility requirements. Households on the Housing Voucher tenant-based program come from the Housing Authority’s waiting list of applicants. 

HACLA offers a variety of Section 8 special programs to eligible households.  They each have different eligibility requirements and each target various segments of low income households such as persons with AIDS and homeless individuals. HACLA is committed to housing homeless individuals and families through the Homeless Program, HUD-VASH, Permanent Supportive Housing Program, Skid Families Demonstration Project, Shelter Plus Care, and Project 50 programs.  The Housing Authority has 132 contracts with 69 non-profit agencies, and works with other government agencies to deliver supportive services to Section 8 clients.