THE PUBLIC HOUSING PROGRAM
Public
Housing was established to provide decent and safe rental housing for eligible
low-income families, the elderly, and persons with disabilities. Public
Housing comes in all sizes and types, from scattered single family houses, to
high-rise apartments for elderly families. The U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Development (HUD) administers Federal aid to local housing agencies
(HAs) that manage the housing for low income residents at rents they can
afford.
Public
Housing is limited to low income families and individuals. The HA determines
your eligibility based on: 1) annual gross income; 2) whether you qualify
as elderly, a person with a disability, or as a family; and 3) U.S. citizenship
or eligible immigration status. If you are eligible, we will check your
references to make sure you and your family will be good tenants. We will
deny admission to any applicant whose habits and practices may be expected to
have a detrimental effect on other tenants or on the community’s environment.
Your
rent, which is referred to as the Total Tenant Payment (TTP) in this program,
would be based on your family’s anticipated gross annual income less
deductions, if any. HUD regulations allow HAs to exclude from annual
income the following allowances: $480 for each dependent; $400 for an elderly
family, or a person with a disability; and some medical deductions for families
headed by an elderly person or a person with disabilities. Based on your
application, the HA representative will determine if any of the allowable
deductions should be subtracted from your annual income. Annual income is
the anticipated total income from all sources received from the family head and
spouse, and each additional member of the family 18 years of age or older.
The
formula used in determining the TTP is the highest of the following, rounded to
the nearest dollar:
- 30 percent of the Monthly Adjusted
Income. (Monthly Adjusted Income is annual income less deductions allowed
by the regulations;
- 10 percent of monthly income;
- Welfare rent, if
applicable; or a $50 minimum rent.