The Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) has announced that it is now accepting preliminary applications for the housing choice voucher program, the government subsidy which helps low-income families pay rent at the location of their choice.
Unlike in years' past, CMHA will be accepting applications year round. Applicants names will be kept on file for 18 months, and lotteries will be held periodically to add names to a waiting list as vouchers are disbursed and slots become available.
To apply, applicants must have or create an email account. Applicants may apply online here, and view the video above for more detailed instructions.
“The need for affordable housing is even greater now than it’s ever been, and the Housing Choice Voucher Program plays a critical role in helping to address housing needs for low-income households," said CMHA CEO Jeffrey K. Patterson, in a press release. "These vouchers provide recipients with the freedom to choose the kinds of housing and the locations that best meet their needs."
The Housing Choice Voucher Program is still widely known as Section 8. It is considered the gold standard for housing subsidies because it allows applicants to live wherever they'd like. Voucher recipients pay about 30 percent of their income to their landlord, and CMHA covers the balance with the Federal funds.
The waiting list for vouchers is extremely competitive. In 2015, when 10,000 tenants were selected for the waiting list in Cuyahoga County, 55,000 had applied.
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Sam Allard is the Senior Writer at Scene, in which capacity he covers politics and power and writes about movies when time permits. He's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and the NEOMFA at Cleveland State. Prior to joining Scene, he was encamped in Sarajevo, Bosnia, on an...
