--District of Columbia Housing Authority--

Persons interested in applying can visit the Client Placement Division’s Client Services Center from 8:30AM-3:45PM, Monday-Thursday at:

To apply in person, applicants must provide government issued photo identification. To request an application be forwarded to you, call the Client Placement Division at (202) 535-1706 from 8:15AM-4:45PM, Monday-Friday.

Applications may be mailed to the Client Services Center at the address above.

Assistance in filling out an application will be provided upon request. All applications must filled out completely and include the signature of the person applying as the head of the household.

The District of Columbia Housing Authority (DCHA) administers 3 subsidized housing programs, with a separate waiting list for each program. Rental assistance is provided to low income families through each housing program and the assistance is based on household income.

The Public Housing program consists of fifty-two apartment communities in Washington, DC that are managed and maintained by DCHA.

2. Housing Choice Voucher--Tenant based Vouchers (Formerly known as the Section 8 Voucher Program)

The Housing Choice Voucher Tenant Based Program (HCVP) provides rental assistance to eligible families obtaining housing from private landlords. A voucher allows you to identify where you would like to live. Once a voucher is issued, a voucher holder can live in any locality in the United States that has a Housing Choice Voucher Tenant Based Program (HCVP). Tenant Based units are managed and maintained by HCVP landlords.

3. Housing Choice Voucher Moderate Rehabilitation--Project Based Vouchers (Formerly known as the Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation Program)

The Housing Choice Voucher Moderate Rehabilitation Program includes apartment communities throughout Washington, DC that are managed by individual landlords. The assistance provided is called “Project-Based” or “Unit-Based”. This means that the assistance provided to pay rent is only for the unit in which a family lives. Unlike a Housing Choice Voucher Program “Tenant Based” voucher, the assistance provided through the Moderate Rehabilitation Program cannot be transferred to another unit.

Housing assistance is available for low - income families. Income limits are determined by the Department of Housing and Urban Development each year and are available in the Client Placement Division’s Client Services Center.

YES. The District of Columbia Housing Authority has waiting list selection preferences for certain situations. Indicating a preference affects where you are placed on the waiting list only. It does not guarantee that you will be offered housing assistance.

Not having a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence; the applicant’s primary nighttime address is a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations; an institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or a public or private place not designated for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.

Living in a unit that is considered substandard as determined by a certified inspector pursuant to the building and/or housing codes of the District of Columbia (or other applicable jurisdiction), at the time of preference verification.

Unit Code Violations

Living in a unit that contains one or more Housing Quality Standards or Code Violations.

Involuntarily Displaced

Having vacated or will vacate (within no more than six months from the date of preference verification) housing as a result of: disaster (e.g. fire, flood, etc.); federal, state or local government action related to code enforcement or public improvement or development; action by a housing owner which is beyond an applicant’s control; or domestic violence; or hate crimes.

Inaccessibility of Unit

Unable to use current housing because applicant or a member of the household has mobility or other impairment.

Employed at least 20 hours per week
Self employed
Attending School full-time
Attending a certified General Equivalency Diploma (GED program
Participates in a verifiable job training program
Elderly
Disabled

Elderly
A family whose head of household, spouse, or sole member is 62 years of age or older;

Near-Elderly
A family whose head of household, spouse, or sole member is at least 50 years of age, but below and 62 years of age; and

Disabled
A family whose head of household, spouse or sole member has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life functions.