Breaking the Section 8 Stigma

[Owen Schwaegerle]

If you’re a landlord you’ve been trained to be leery of Section 8 housing. There is a negative stigma associated with the program and people who receive vouchers in the program. We recently had a panel at the SLO Real Estate Investor Meetup with speakers from HASLO, Five Cities Homeless Coalition, and Transitions Mental Health. During this panel they brought to light the significance that government assistance housing programs provide for our community. To put this into perspective, the majority of people in this program in our area have a monthly income of $1,000-2,000 per month. Where can you find a rental unit in  California for $1,000-2,000 per month? How do you qualify for a rental if you only make that much? And how do you afford food, gas, utilities, shelter, and health care on top of that? The answer is you don’t, so many of these people end up homeless, living in their cars, or on the streets. 

Here are three of the greatest concerns most landlords, including myself, have of Section 8 and these programs.

1. Section 8 means poor quality tenants
2. Government inspections of my property
3. If I rent to Section 8 can I leave the program?

Section 8 means poor quality tenants

Have you ever had a bad tenant? How many of those tenants were Section 8? The truth is you will find bad tenants everywhere. The quality of Section 8 tenants is the same as the general public, sometimes even better. Once you get a Section 8 voucher it’s like winning the lottery. A lot of the people in this program only earn $1-2K/mo, so this totally covers housing! They are so grateful for the program that they do not want to lose it. Plus, in order to qualify they have to check in with their agency regularly. They are on their best behavior and know that they are on a tight leash. Plus, just because they are Section 8 does not mean that they are above the law or the letter of the lease. You as the landlord will still have the right to give them a 3 day notice if they are in breach of the lease agreement for being a disturbance to the right to peaceful enjoyment of the property or if they have trash piling up outside, etc. Granted, these people will not have high incomes or high credit, but the rent payments are guaranteed by the government. Some landlords who get into these agencies actually really enjoy having 1 tenant, the agency, and then the agency fills the units and helps manage the people for you. It’s like have an extra set of eyes and ears on the property, and people who help support the tenants, coaching them to succeed with life skills like budgeting, finance, and health.

Government inspections of my property

Government inspections seem daunting. Who wants the government coming into their property and poking their nose around? The inspection is not as invasive as you’d think. They are simply looking for all the standard stuff: carbon monoxide and smoke detectors, water heater braces, proper ventilation. They want to make sure that your unit is safe and habitable for the tenants living in them. As long as you aren’t a slumlord you shouldn’t have anything to worry about. People need a safe, quality place to live.

Can you leave the program?

Yes, you can leave the program. Once you rent to a Section 8 tenant it does not label you a Section 8 landlord for life. You are not required to turn all of your units or properties over to Section 8. Once the tenant moves out, you do not have to lease the space to a Section 8 tenant again if you do not want to. The tenant signs a lease so you can still give a 3 day notice for lease violations like disturbance of the peace, trash accumulation, animals, etc. Most of these programs have a three way contract they sign. The landlord and the tenant sign a lease, the agency and the tenant sign a contract for terms in order for the tenant to receive the voucher/benefits, and the landlord and agency sign a contract.

Overall, there is a desperate need in our communities for the housing programs to have more units to house their people. One of the panelists shared a story about a 93 year old woman who had been living in a rental for 17 years. Once the property was sold, the new landlords wanted to raise the rent by $1,000/mo. Given that this senior is on a fixed income, she could no longer afford the rent and this forced her to be displaced. That was when the housing providers were able to enter in, get her assistance, and find her housing. Could you imagine a 93 year old woman on the streets? This is why these programs exist. It’s to help those who are in dire need.

Have you tried renting to Section 8? How did it go? If you have written Section 8 off completely, instead of avoiding the program and people who are using this social service, perhaps give it a try and see for yourself how it works out.