How to File for Rent assistance

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Paying rent can be a challenge if you are a low-income family, disabled, or elderly. Get the rent assistance you need.

Step 1: Search for privately owned housing
Search for privately owned apartments that offer lower rent for low-income tenants. Visit the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's website at hud.gov to search for apartments in your area.

Step 2: Apply for public housing
Contact your local city or county housing authority about public housing if you are disabled, elderly, a low-income family, or have been displaced by government action or a disaster. Public houses are publicly owned and typically feature affordable rent.

Step 3: File for Section 8
File for a Section 8 housing voucher with the Public Housing Administration, or PHA. With a housing voucher, your rent is set at 30 percent of your income, and the voucher covers the rest. You sign a lease with the landlord, and the landlord signs a housing assistance payments contract with the PHA.

Tip
Be prepared to pay a security deposit if the landlord requires it.

Step 4: Check with the state
Check with your state government for rental assistance in your area.

Step 5: Ask for help
Contact a HUD-approved housing counseling agency, or call HUD at 800-569-4287 if you need advice about getting rental assistance.

Did You Know?
President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1968, which included the Fair Housing Act that prohibited discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing.