Subsidized housing is government-sponsored economic assistance aimed at alleviating housing costs and expenses for impoverished people with low to moderate incomes. In the United States, subsidized housing is often called "affordable housing". Forms of subsidies include direct housing subsidies, non-profit housing, public housing, rent supplements/vouchers, and some forms of co-operative and private sector housing.
Subsidized housing can be obtained through vouchers, where the subsidy is used by a tenant to find rental housing in the private market and is paid to a private landlord, or it can be multifamily subsidized housing, where the subsidy is given to the owner who provides affordable housing. To be eligible for public and subsidized housing, your income must be below certain income limits, and you must also meet other qualifications. Income limits for public housing and vouchers are set by the government and change every year, while income limits for multifamily subsidized housing vary from development to development.
In subsidized housing, the government pays apartment owners to offer reduced rents to tenants with low incomes. To apply for subsidized housing, search for a participating housing community using the HUD map. Each property has its own system for accepting applications for its rental units, and some properties have waiting lists.
In addition to the Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) program and HUD subsidized public and private housing, there are other opportunities for affordable housing, such as the New York State affordable housing directory, New York City online housing lotteries, and the US Department of Agriculture Rural Housing.
