Please allow us to assist you with your housing needs!
Truth or Consequences Housing Authority
108 S. Cedar Street
Truth or Consequences, NM 87901
Phone: (575) 894-2244 ext 21
Fax: (575) 894-0756
Email: manager@torchousing.org
Office Hours:
9 am-12 pm
1 pm-4 pm
Monday-Friday
Housing Choice Voucher (formerly Section 8) Program
ATTENTION: Our Housing Choice Voucher Program is only for residents of Sierra County, New Mexico...If you have questions regarding other states please contact US Department of Housing & Urban Development.
Truth or Consequences list of landlords for Voucher rental units.
WHAT ARE HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHERS?
The housing choice voucher program is the federal government's major program for assisting very low-income families, the elderly, and the disabled to rent decent, safe and sanitary housing in the private market. Since the rental assistance is provided on behalf of the family or individual, participants are able to find and lease privately owned housing, including single-family homes, townhouses and apartments. The participant is free to choose any housing that meets the requirements of the program and is not limited to units located in subsidized housing projects and can find housing not only in Truth or Consequences but anywhere in Sierra County.
Eligibility for a housing choice voucher is based on the total adjusted annual income and family size and is limited to U.S. citizens and specified categories of non-citizens who have eligible immigration status. In general, the family's income may not exceed 50% of the median income for the county or metropolitan area in which the family chooses to live. Median income levels are published by HUD and vary by location.
During the application process, an applicant supplies proof of family income, assets and family composition to determine program eligibility and the amount of the rental assistance payment. Call, mail, e-mail or drop by the Housing Authority for an application. You can also download the application. Note, when using Adobe Acrobat Reader, you can fill out the form and print it, but the information will not be saved -- it saves only the blank form.
If eligible, applicant's name is placed on a waiting list.
HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHERS -- HOW DO THEY FUNCTION?
The housing choice voucher program places the choice of housing in the hands of the individual family. A very low-income family who has been selected to participate is encouraged to consider several housing choices to secure the best rental housing for its needs.
The rental unit must meet an acceptable level of health and safety before the payments to landlords under the housing choice voucher program can be approved. When the housing choice voucher holder finds a unit that it wishes to occupy and reaches an agreement with the landlord over the lease terms, the dwelling must be inspected and the lease must be reviewed for approval by the Housing Authority. A housing choice voucher holder is also advised of the unit size for which it is eligible, based on family size and composition, and the applicable rent levels.
In the housing choice voucher program, the Housing Authority determines a payment standard which is used to calculate the amount of rental assistance a family will receive, but does not affect the amount of rent a landlord may charge or the family may pay. A family which receives a housing choice voucher can select a unit which rents below or above the payment standard. The housing choice voucher family must pay more than 30% of its monthly adjusted gross income for rent and utilities if the unit rent is greater than the payment standard. However, the family would pay less than 30% of its monthly adjusted gross income if the total rent was less than the payment standard.
FAMILY SHARE OF RENT VERSUS THE RENT SUBSIDY:
Under the housing choice voucher program, a family may choose a unit that rents for more than the payment standard and may pay more or less than 30% of its monthly adjusted gross income for rent. The Housing Authority calculates the maximum amount of rental assistance allowable, which is the difference between the payments standard and 30% of the family's monthly adjusted gross income, and pays rental assistance. The amount of rental assistance paid by the Housing Authority changes with the payment standard while the amount the tenant pays varies with the actual rent. For example, if a family locates a unit that rents below the payment standard, the family would pay less than 30% of its monthly adjusted gross income for rent. On the other hand, if a family decides to rent a unit above the payment standard, it would pay over 30% of its monthly adjusted gross income for rent. The family's rent share also changes when its income or family circumstances change.
CAN I MOVE AND CONTINUE TO RECEIVE HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHER RENTAL ASSISTANCE?
A family's housing needs change over time with changes in family size, job locations, and for other reasons. The housing choice voucher program is designed to allow families to move without the loss of rental assistance. Moves are permissible as long as the family notifies the Housing Authority ahead of time, terminates its existing lease within the appropriate provisions, and finds acceptable alternate housing.
Under the housing choice voucher program, new housing choice voucher holders may choose a unit anywhere in the United States if the family lived within the jurisdiction of the Housing Authority issuing the housing choice voucher when the family applied for assistance. Those new housing choice voucher holders not living within the jurisdiction of the Housing Authority at the time the family applies for rental assistance must initially lease a unit within that jurisdiction for the first twelve months of assistance. A family that wishes to move to another Housing Authority's jurisdiction must consult with the Housing Authority that currently administers it rental assistance to verify the procedures for moving.
ROLES - THE TENANT, THE LANDLORD, THE HOUSING AGENCY AND HUD
Once the Housing Authority approves an eligible family's lease and housing unit, the family and the landlord sign a lease and, at the same time, the landlord and the HA sign a housing assistance contract which runs for the same term as the lease. This means that everyone -- tenant, landlord and Housing Authority -- has obligations and responsibilities within the housing choice voucher program.
Tenant's Role: When a family selects a housing unit, and the HA approves the unit and lease, the family signs a lease with the landlord for at least one year. The tenant may be required to pay a security deposit to the landlord. After the first year the landlord may initiate a new lease or allow the family to remain in the unit on a month-to-month lease.
When the family is settled in a new home, the family is expected to comply with the lease and the program requirements, pay its share of rent on time, maintain the unit in good condition and notify the Housing Authority of any changes in income or family composition.
Landlord's Role: The role of the landlord in the housing choice voucher program is to provide decent, safe, and sanitary housing to a tenant at a reasonable rent. The dwelling unit must pass the program's housing standards and be maintained up to those standards as long as the owner receives housing assistance payments. In addition, the landlord is expected to provide the services agreed to as part of the lease signed with the tenant and the contract signed with the Housing Authority.
Housing Authority's Role: The Housing Authority administers the housing choice voucher program locally, provides a family with the rental assistance that enables the family to seek out suitable housing and the Housing Authority enters into a contract with the landlord to provide rental assistance payments on behalf of the family. If the landlord fails to meet his/her obligations under the lease, the Housing Authority has the right to terminate assistance payments.
HUD's Role: To cover the cost of the program, HUD provides funds to allow the Housing Authority to make housing assistance payments on behalf of the families and HUD pays the Housing Authority a fee for the costs of administering the program.
For further information contact the Housing Choice Voucher Coordinator.
