Section 8 rent

[Frank Dean]

Hello Everyone,

I am looking into the rental properties at Pittsburgh, PA. In order to make positive cash flow, I would need to do section 8 rent. Does anyone have experience on section 8 rent at Pittsburgh area? Thanks a lot!

[Travis Biziorek]

Hey Frank, I have S8 experience in Detroit but not Pittsburgh.

A word of caution... I would be careful about doing something in an effort to "make positive cash flow".

Section 8 has its pros but there are an equal number of drawbacks. Just search the forums here and you'll read a ton about the program.

I tell people it is a tool rather than a strategy. And most people don't understand that S8 rents can change, usually on an annual basis as tenants are reassessed.

How bad can it change? I just had one of my S8 tenants completely lose their entire voucher on their latest reassessment. They're now on the hook for the entire rental amount.

So again, I'd be careful of chasing this craze just to make the numbers work.