Should I Rent to Section 8 Tenants?

[Thomas O'Donnell]

I have been having trouble getting the other side of my duplex rented. I have dropped rent multiple times and it is listed in a lot of places. Most leads that I have been getting are for section 8 tenants or tenants who don’t meet my minimum requirements. I currently am staying in a Class C area. I was wondering if instead of lowering rent, I should keep it where I had it, and consider renting to section 8. Although most of the rent is guaranteed, I know there can still be issues with these certain tenants. I’m wondering if any of you have rented to section 8 tenants or are familiar with the process/experience. At this point it feels like I’m going to keep paying the whole mortgage unless I get someone in here soon. I would love to hear your thoughts about doing this. Thank you! 

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Chen Wang:

I am new to section 8. Just rent my newly bought property to a section 8 tenant. Is section 8 payment guaranteed? How to do tenant screening since section 8 tenant always has low credit score?

You'll get different opinions. In my experience, Section 8 Tenants are below average renters. This means they are difficult to deal with, they may still be late on their portion of the rent, and they tend to leave the place in a mess. Over half of my Section 8 Tenants have left owing money and we're unable to collect. I stopped accepting Section 8 because it just wasn't worth the trouble. Other Landlords don't care and seem to enjoy Section 8. You just have to try it for yourself.