frequently asked questions
Section 8 Housing choice Voucher Wait-List
Who is eligible for a voucher?
Any family or single person who lives in Yamhill County (or wants to move here), earning less than 50% of the area median family income (MFI), may join our waiting list. Exactly how much you can earn depends on your family size. You can review our current income limits to determine whether you are eligible. We are required by HUD to give priority to a certain percentage of applicants who earn less than 30% of the MFI. Please note that final eligibility for admission to our program is also based on other factors such as U.S. citizenship, criminal history or sex-offender status (if any), any unpaid debts to a Housing Authority, and other factors reviewed during the intake process.
How much will my rent be once I have a voucher?
Your rent will be 30% of your adjusted monthly income. If the house or apartment you find is unusually expensive, you may have to pay slightly more. Depending on your circumstances your rent may be reduced to accommodate certain expenses, such as childcare or medical costs. We will explain your potential rent reductions at your orientation meeting if you qualify for a voucher.
What places can I rent with a voucher?
You can rent from any landlord in Yamhill County who is willing and eligible to participate in our program. There will be a limit on the cost of the place you find to rent - this limit will depend on where it is located in Yamhill County, your voucher size, and your family's income. We keep a notebook of available housing in our office. Feel free to stop in and have a look any time during our normal business hours.
How can I check the status of my application?
Our waiting list is very long and it's not always possible to determine when you might get a voucher. We can tell you that you are current on the list, but we can not say when your name might be selected from the list. We will inform you by mail and email when you are selected. It is very important to make sure we have a current mailing and email address for you.
Section 8 Landlord
A tenant with a Section 8 voucher wants to rent my house or apartment. What do I do?
The tenant should provide you with a "Request for Lease Approval", or what we commonly call a "Green Sheet" (they are printed on green paper). The "Green Sheet" is necessary because it will tell us everything we need to know about the unit so we can determine the tenant's eligibility for the unit.
The tenant will give you a "Green Sheet" to fill out. Once completed, you give it back to the tenant who must then return it to our office.
We will review the information provided on the "Green Sheet" and determine if the tenant is eligible for the unit, and if the unit is eligible for our program.
If all criteria for eligibility are met, our office will contact you to schedule an inspection of the unit.
Once the unit passes inspection, the tenant can move in. This of course could be dependent upon the Tenant's previous residence and any move notice given. You and the tenant need to sign a one-year lease. Then you need to sign a Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) contract with us. These documents are necessary before any payments can be processed.
Once these steps are complete, payments begin. Payments are generated at the beginning and approximate mid-point of each month. Please keep in mind that we cannot start a new lease with an existing tenant until the previous lease has ended. Also, we cannot start assistance until the unit has passed inspection and the tenant has keys to the unit.
How does the payment process work?
With Section 8, the housing authority is responsible for a portion (or sometimes all) of the unit's rent. We make payments directly to the landlord. Landlord payments are generally made on the first business day of each month.
What about raising the rent? Are there limits?
As long as we can determine that the rent is comparable to other units in the surrounding market, there is no limit to the amount you can raise the rent. When a family first moves into a unit there is a limit to how much rent they will qualify for. That limit, however, is based on the particular family's level of assistance and not on the house or apartment. Again, this limit only applies when a family first moves in.
Since we require a one-year lease for the first year of tenancy, the rent cannot be raised during that time. A major difference between raising the rent in a Section 8 tenancy and any other tenancy is that we require a 60-day written notice to the tenant and a copy given to us (rather than the common 30-days). This allows us time to process the increase and determine how it will affect our payments and the tenant's payments.
What about evicting tenants who have Section 8? Is that hard?
All Section 8 tenants must have a one-year lease when they first move into a unit. You can still evict a tenant during the first year, but during that time it must be for cause, which is explained in the lease and contract paperwork that you sign with us. After the first year, tenancies typically become month-to-month, with the option of a 30-day termination. Your rights are the same as they would be for any private market tenant.
We do not get involved in the eviction process. Our only request is that you send us a copy of any eviction notice that you give.
I have a house or apartment for rent and I want to advertise to Section 8 voucher holders. What can I do?
Add your unit to our list of units that accept section 8. You can do this by downloading our Units Available Form and mailing it back to us, by coming into our office, or even by just calling our office and telling the receptionist you are a landlord with a unit to advertise.
Housing Rehabilitation Program
How do I qualify?
To qualify you must:
Own and occupy your home.
Have adequate equity in your home and property to secure the loan.
Have an annual family income within specific income limits.
How much can I borrow?
Based upon the amount of available equity in your home & property the standard loan amount is:
$15,000.00 up to $25,000.00 based upon repair needs & available funding.
What are the loan terms?
Loan terms are dependent upon your annual family income:
0% interest loan with no interest accruing and no monthly payments, or
2% interest loan with no payments or interest accruing for one year 20-year term
When does the loan get paid back?
The loan is re-paid when:
The home is sold, refinanced or the title is transferred.
What kinds of repairs can be made?
We cover repairs that address health, safety, or structural problems as well as general home repair in areas such as:
Foundation
Roof
Plumbing and Septic
Painting
Weatherization
Dry Rot
Handicapped Needs
Flooring
Kitchen & Bathroom
Siding
Electrical
Heating
Gutters
Doors
Windows
Drywall
Who does the work?
A licensed contractor of your choice, or qualified homeowners
How do I apply?
Contact our office to ask about putting your name on our wait-list.
Fill out an Application for our Wait List.