If there’s one expense you can’t miss every month, it’s housing. Because if you don’t pay your rent on time, your landlord will evict you. And once that happens, you’ll be living with a friend or relative or on the streets.
How can you ensure you pay the rent on time? You could save money by cutting other expenses. Or you could get an extra job or do side gigs to up your income.
What do some people do to make their rent more affordable? They apply for Section 8 with the hopes of getting a Housing Choice Voucher. If they succeed, that voucher will ensure they only pay a certain portion of their income towards the rent.
While this may sound like an attractive option, what if you could use your Section 8 voucher to buy a home? Doing so could help you reach the dream of becoming a homeowner sooner, and it could give you a solid foundation for a nice financial future. And if you think that using that voucher to buy a home isn’t possible, know that it is since the year 2000.
The Section 8 Homeownership Program
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) made the shift to allow Section 8 vouchers for homeownership 20 years ago. In doing so, they’ve helped many low-income families buy their first homes.
Could you use a Section 8 voucher to buy your first home? If you qualify for the program and meet certain income requirements, it could. The way to find this out is to contact your nearest Public Housing Agency (PHA). They will help you apply for Section 8 and determine if you’re eligible, so contact them as soon as possible.
Is Section 8 Homeownership the Right Fit for You?
Although the thought of getting a voucher to help pay your mortgage so you can buy a home sounds great, some drawbacks come with the Section 8 Homeownership Program.
To start, some lenders may not want to work with a PHA and help you get a loan. This could become an obstacle as you search for financing. Why would you need financing? Because your homeownership voucher will pay a portion of your housing expenses, not all of them.
Another drawback to a homeownership voucher is that it may not get you into your dream home. You will be limited by what you can buy, so expensive real estate markets may be out of reach for now.
If you were looking to move into a new home immediately, a voucher might not fill your needs. Waiting lists can be so long that you could be waiting years to receive your voucher.
With those drawbacks out of the way, let’s look at the main advantages of a Section 8 voucher for homeownership. You gain pride in owning a home, and you can build equity with the investment.
You’ll get a housing partner to help you throughout the process. You can look for better neighborhoods when buying versus renting. And since Section 8 requires classes when using a homeownership voucher, you can learn a lot about personal finance and owning a home, so your financial future becomes more secure.
Section 8 Assist
