HACA to take pre-applications for housing voucher program waitlist

For the first time in four years, the Housing Authority of the City of Austin is poised to open the waitlist for the Housing Choice Voucher program (formerly known as Section 8). Online pre-applications will be accepted from noon on Sept. 17 through 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 24. Free applications are at www.HACAapply.org and can be completed in about five to 10 minutes using any device with internet access – laptop, smartphone, etc. There are also public computers available at several HACA community partner locations. The application is only available at that website: HACA warns against using third parties that charge a fee to assist with applications. During the waitlist opening, people with disabilities can request application assistance at the toll-free helpline at 888-335-0350. At the close of the pre-application period, 2,000 fully complete and unduplicated applications will be selected via a computer-generated random lottery for inclusion in the waiting list. Applicants can check their status at www.hacanet.org/2018lottery, beginning about a month after the application deadline. “HACA’s Housing Choice Voucher program helps low-income Austin families who would otherwise struggle to afford rent,” said HACA president and CEO Michael Gerber in the press release. “Reopening the waiting list will allow us to offer much needed assistance to 2,000 more families, providing housing stability to families with children, seniors and persons with disabilities.” The voucher program currently serves about 6,000 residents. Almost 20,000 applications were submitted during the last waitlist opening.