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More than 12,000
participate in Section 8 Lottery
SEATTLE—May 1, 2008—Seattle
Housing Authority has created a new waiting list of
4,000 households for its Housing Choice Voucher program
(Section 8). Those 4,000 were selected at random from
nearly 12,400 households that entered a lottery for
waiting list positions conducted in March and April. Of
those on the new list, 600 have already been notified to
receive a voucher. The new waiting list is expected to
last for about two years.
Board revises
eligibility standards for Housing Choice Voucher
applicants
SEATTLE—April 21, 2008—Eligibility
criteria for Housing Choice Voucher applicants were
revised by Seattle Housing Authority's Board of
Commissioners in a unanimous vote on April 21.
Applicants who have been incarcerated for certain crimes
will now be eligible to receive a voucher after a 12
month waiting period once their incarceration ends. The
new standard will help to lower the regulatory barriers
that make it difficult for homeless people to secure
housing.
Decision on
Housing Choice Voucher eligibility criteria expected in
April
SEATTLE—March 21, 2008—Eligibility criteria for Housing
Choice Voucher applicants has been the subject of
several community meetings over the past two months.
The Housing Authority is considering changing its
criteria so that applicants who have been
incarcerated for certain crimes would be eligible to
receive a voucher after a 12 month waiting period. This
new standard could help more homeless people secure
housing. Seattle Housing Authority's Board of
Commissioners will likely vote on the proposal at their
meeting on April 21.
Lottery for
Housing Choice Voucher waiting list begins March 25
SEATTLE—March
20, 2008—Beginning on March 25, Seattle Housing
Authority is conducting
a mail-in lottery to establish a new waiting list
for the popular Housing Choice Voucher program, also
known as Section 8. The goal of the lottery is to add at
least 4,000 names to the new list. The lottery will be
open for two weeks, and lottery sign-up forms must be
postmarked by April 8. Forms can be picked up at
libraries, community centers and other locations
throughout Seattle, as well as on
seattlehousing.org, beginning March 25.
Stakeholders
will consider changes to SHA's screening criteria at 9
a.m. meeting on Jan. 3
SEATTLE—January
2, 2008—One factor that Seattle Housing considers
in determining the eligibility of an applicant to the
Housing Choice Voucher program is the nature of any
criminal offenses in the applicant's history.
The screening criteria related to criminal history are
being revised by the Housing Authority to match
criteria used by the King County Housing Authority and
thus eliminate confusion among applicants. A meeting on
Jan. 3 will provide an opportunity for landlords and
other stakeholders to comment on the proposed new
criteria.
'Save My Spot'
now underway
SEATTLE—June 15, 2007—Beginning
June 1, SHA's Low Income
Public Housing program inaugurated its new waiting list
check-in system. The new system is designed to move
people into housing faster by keeping the waiting list
updated on a monthly basis. People on the waiting list
will verify on a monthly basis that they are still
interested in moving into public housing. For more
information,
click here.
Subsidy for
Housing Choice Vouchers increased
SEATTLE—April 30, 2007—SHA has increased its Housing Choice Voucher
payment standards, which govern the amount of subsidy
that is available to support rentals by participants in
the program. It has been nearly two years since SHA's
Board of Commissioners increased these payment
standards. Lisa Cipollone-Wolters, SHA’s Director of
Rental Assistance Programs, noted that the agency raises
the Voucher Payment Standards as needed to keep up with
rising rents in Seattle.
Click here for details.
Section 8
utilization climbs to 95 percent
SEATTLE—March
1, 2007—Seattle
Housing's PorchLight housing center has recently reached
an important milestone by issuing over 95 percent of its
available Housing Choice Vouchers to renters. Nearly
8,000 households in Seattle now use these vouchers to
help pay for rentals in the private market.
Click here to learn
more about the challenges and innovations in this
program.
SHA steps up
efforts to issue rental vouchers
SEATTLE—November 18, 2006—As the rental market
tightens, SHA staff is intensifying its efforts to get
Housing Choice Vouchers into the hands of those who need
them. More than 350 people from the new Section 8
waiting list created in May have attended Saturday
information sessions designed to move them through the
process of obtaining a voucher as quickly as possible.
Click here
to learn more.
Demand for
Housing Vouchers remains high
SEATTLE—June 12,
2006—Nearly 6,000 people turned in sign-up forms for the
Housing Choice Voucher waiting list during the two-week
period in May when the forms were being accepted. With
the list now closed once again to new applicants,
Seattle Housing will complete a random drawing to choose
a new waiting list of 4,000 in the next week or so. For
more information,
click here.
Section 8 Waiting List now open
until
May 26
SEATTLE—May
15—Even
though some Seattle residents may have recently signed
up for King County Housing Authority's Section 8 Waiting
List, it is important to also sign up in Seattle if they
want to live in the city. King County Housing Authority
supplies vouchers for people to live in King County but,
outside the City of Seattle. SHA supplies vouchers
within the city only. Seattle Housing Authority is
currently accepting Section 8 Lottery Sign-Up forms
which offer a chance for low-income residents to be one
of 4,000 households to make up SHA's new Section 8
Waiting List. Sign-up forms are accepted by mail only.
To
read more,
click here.
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