Kenosha County, Wisconsin, is not excepted from the nation's affordable housing crisis. As the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) reports, a full-time minimum wage worker in the county cannot afford fair market rent. For example, the typical two-bedroom rent in Kenosha costs $843, as of 2010, which requires full-time hourly earnings of $16.21 for affordability, based on the standard that a family should put no more than 30 percent of its income towards housing. Kenosha's minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, as of 2010. HUD's Section 8 program covers the amount of rent that, in most cases, exceeds the 30-percent threshold for eligible renter households.
Instructions
1. Contact the Kenosha Housing Authority at 262-653-4120. While HUD funds and oversees the Section 8 program, local housing authorities run its day-to-day activities, including the screening of applicants.
2. Ask if the Section 8 waiting list is open. As of October 2010, it is closed. The Kenosha Housing Authority's website does not indicate when it will reopen. In addition to an online announcement, housing authorities often publicize the reopening of Section 8 waiting lists in newspapers and through other media.
3. Fill out a preliminary application when the Kenosha Housing Authority's waiting list opens. Provide documents that verify the identities of the members of your household. Housing authorities generally accept birth certificates and Social Security numbers.
4. Verify income and assets. Provide paycheck stubs, tax returns, banking information and other items the Kenosha Housing Authority requests to see if you are eligible for Section 8 assistance. You cannot earn more than 50 percent of Kenosha County's median income, which is $35,500 for a four-person family, according to HUD's 2010 income limits. As the Kenosha Housing Authority points out, HUD requires it to give 75 percent of its Section 8 vouchers to families at or below 30 percent of Kenosha County's median income, which equals $21,300, as of 2010.
5. Wait. If the Kenosha Housing Authority approves your application, it will place you on the Section 8 waiting list. As HUD's Section 8 website explains, some wait times are lengthy, often numbering months or years. The Kenosha Housing Authority does not indicate exactly how long it takes for a family to receive assistance.
6. Search for the unit size you are approved for when the Kenosha Housing Authority indicates that your name has reached the top of the waiting list. You can find Section 8 rental listings at the Go Section 8 website as well as through traditional on and offline sources.
7. Follow the landlord's procedure to see if you qualify for the unit he is offering. You cannot simply rent any unit you are interested in. Landlords can screen Section 8 tenants as they would a market rate renter. HUD does not obligate landlords to rent to Section 8 families just because they indicate they will accept them; however, landlords must treat Section 8 tenants no differently than they do traditional renters.
8. Sign a one-year lease if the landlord approves your tenancy and the unit passes a HUD inspection. Before entering the Section 8 housing stock, local housing authorities must certify that rentals meet HUD's housing quality standards.
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