Seattle Housing Authority to Open Section 8 Waitlist

This message is about Seattle Housing Authority’s Section 8 Waitlist opening March 23rd.

Do you or someone you know need subsidized housing? In two weeks, on Monday March 23, 2015, the online lottery registration will open for Section 8 housing vouchers through Seattle Housing Authority.

Section 8 vouchers allow participating tenants to choose and rent units from private landlords. The Housing Authority pays a fixed amount of the rent to the owner each month, and the tenant pays the difference between this subsidy and the total rent, in addition to any utilities not included in the rent. In general, tenants pay between 30 percent and 40 percent of their monthly income for rent and utilities

Seattle Housing Authority will be opening a new waitlist in the Spring of 2015 for the Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) Program using a lottery system with registration available online-only. Any person 18 years old or older (or an emancipated minor) may register for the lottery no matter where he or she lives. If someone lives outside of Seattle and receives a lottery number, and later a voucher, they will be required to live in Seattle during their first year on the program. Residents of Seattle Housing’s Low-Income Public Housing units are welcome to register.

Important Waitlist lottery information:

• Registration will be open from March 23, 2015 at 8 a.m. through April 10 at 5 p.m. (Pacific Standard Time) and a lottery will be held to determine who is placed on this new waitlist. Please note: A link to the online-only registration form will not be made available on this page until the registration period officially opens.
  
• Only one person per household may register. Households may only register once.
  
• Registering for the lottery does NOT mean you are applying for housing.
  
• If you are already placed on the Section 8 waitlist that was originally established in 2013, there is no need to register for this lottery. Households still on the waitlist will receive first priority as vouchers become available.
  
• This is not a first-come, first-served process, so there is no need to be the first in line to register. A rush at the beginning of the registration period may result in website instability. If you experience this, please come back to the site later. Also, please do not leave registration until the last minute on April 10th in case you experience technical difficulties.
  
• The registration period will not close early and there is no limit to the number of registrations accepted.
  
• The registration form asks you to provide the name, date of birth, social security number, race and gender of all members of your household, as well as your household's annual income before taxes. Since it is not possible to save an unfinished registration, it is best to have this information on-hand before beginning your registration.
  
• For technical problems with registration, call the waitlist hotline at 206-239-1674 for help.
  
• If you do not have access to a computer, call their waitlist hotline at 206-239-1674 for a list of locations that can serve you.
  
• All applications must be submitted online only through their website, seattlehousing.org/waitlist. You cannot register at any other website. Registration for Section 8 is free, if you are asked for money you are not on the correct website.

To learn if you are eligible to receive a Housing Choice Voucher from Seattle Housing Authority, please read the SHA Eligibility page.