What it is
Subsidy attached to a specific apartment building rather than the household. Tenants apply directly to the property, pay roughly 30% of income, and lose the subsidy if they move.
Who funds and runs it: HUD contracts directly with private owners; no PHA gatekeeping for most properties.
Who qualifies
To be eligible for the Project-Based Section 8 program, your household income generally cannot exceed 50% of the Area Median Income (AMI) for the metro or county where you live. AMI is set by HUD each year and varies enormously across the country — what counts as "very low income" in San Francisco is not the same as in Mississippi. See the income limits explainer for the actual dollar figures, and look up your specific state on the states page.
Most federal rental assistance programs also require that you:
- Be a U.S. citizen or have eligible immigration status (mixed-status families can still qualify, with subsidy prorated for eligible members).
- Pass a basic background check; serious criminal history involving violence, drug manufacturing, or sex offenses can be disqualifying. Most other criminal history does not disqualify you under current HUD guidance.
- Not owe money to the same PHA from a previous tenancy.
How to apply
Because this program is tied to specific buildings rather than to households, you apply directly to the property. Each property maintains its own waiting list. The HUD Resource Locator (resources.hud.gov) shows participating buildings near you. Plan to apply to multiple properties at once — most have multi-year waits.
Almost every application requires the same documents: government-issued photo ID for every household member 18 or older, Social Security cards or ITINs, birth certificates for minors, the last 60 days of pay stubs, the most recent federal tax return, current bank statements, proof of any other income (Social Security, SSI, SSDI, TANF, child support, unemployment), and a written verification of any disability that would qualify you for a disability-priority preference.
Where it's available
The Project-Based Section 8 program is available nationwide, but the funded capacity per PHA — and therefore your real-world chance of getting help — varies widely by state. Browse by state to see how many PHAs operate the program in your area:
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Common misconceptions
"Section 8 means the projects." The Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) is tenant-based — you find a private rental and the voucher pays part of the rent. Public Housing is the buildings owned and operated by the PHA. They are different programs, with different applications and waiting lists.
"You have to be on welfare to qualify." Cash welfare (TANF) is unrelated to rental assistance eligibility. Working households make up the majority of voucher holders. The qualifier is income relative to the area median, not the source of that income.
"If I get a raise I'll lose my voucher." Section 8 rent rises with your income (you pay 30% of adjusted income), but the voucher itself is not lost until your income exceeds the program's continuing-eligibility ceiling for several months in a row. The Family Self-Sufficiency program even lets you bank the rent increases tied to earnings as savings.