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Waiting List for Housing? 3 Things You Need to Know

Waiting List for Housing? 3 Things You Need to Know

If you’ve looked into low income housing at all, you’ve inevitably run into waiting lists. In some areas, lists stretch out over five years or more. It’s discouraging, depressing and overwhelming.

It’s also not that simple.

What is a wait list? 

Low income housing agencies have wait lists because there just isn’t enough low income housing to go around. There is a lot of competition for low income housing because there are way more low income households than there are units available.

woman crying with child because of long housing waiting list

My waiting list says 5+ years!

It is, unfortunately, quite common for waiting lists to stretch three, four, or even five years into the future. Some are even longer. It’s horrible.

So, will you really have to wait that long for housing?! Maybe… but probably not.

How do they calculate how long it will take?

The length of the wait list is based on a really simple estimate. If 500 households apply for housing but only 100 apartments become available each year, the office will estimate that the wait list is five years long. That’s because it will take the office five years to serve everyone on the list based on current trends.

Does it really take that long to get into low income housing?

Not everybody on the list will actually move in to those apartments. After all, people’s circumstances change as time goes by.

Over time, many of the people on the list will have found other housing options. Many may have moved to different cities where they could find housing. Some may start earning more than the income limits allow. Others may be awarded disability benefits they’ve been waiting on. These people may no longer need or qualify for the low income housing they’ve applied for.

Others may be disqualified for a number of reasons. They may have failed to complete the paperwork or interview process. Someone in the household may have been convicted of a drug-related or violent crime, be a registered sex offender, or have been previously disqualified from public housing assistance. Just behaving in a threatening or abusive way toward a housing authority employee may be grounds for being removed from the wait list.

Even little missteps (like traffic tickets) can stop you from getting housing.

“I work for Housing for Homeless and I see people leave, evicted, and so on,” explained Star Fitchpatrick from Florida. “Sometimes your wait isn’t that long. A lot depends on your criminal record, evictions, and if you’re working or not. You’re not going to get in anywhere without working or some sort of income… and going through most anything that has government backing, especially HUD, has very strict rules. Sometimes traffic violations can knock you out of the running.”

When you consider all of these factors, it’s very possibly that you will be able to get into housing sooner than you expected.

What number am I on the Section 8 waiting list?

You should receive a letter after you are accepted to the wait list. However, a lot of people turn to the internet to try to get updates on their position in the queue. Unfortunately, this isn’t really answerable at all. You could contact your local agency for that information but they may not be able to give you an exact answer either. Even if they can tell you what number you are in the queue, they probably still won’t be able to tell you exactly how long it will take to get housing.

What happens when the waiting list is too long?

Sometimes, the wait list will become so full that the agency will stop accepting applications altogether. This has happened to the Section 8 program in many areas. After they are able to work through the waiting list a bit, they reopen applications. Be sure to check often for updates or you may miss your opportunity to apply!

What should I do while I’m on the waiting list?

Whatever you do, don’t just relax and wait! That’s a surefire way to make sure that you don’t get housing right away.

While you’re waiting on one waiting list, apply for others. Apply for all of the housing units you can find. Keep track of how long the waiting lists are for each location and if the waiting list is closed. If the list is closed, call back often to see if it’s opened. Keep records of who you’ve contacted, when and what you learned.

Our friends at How To Get On have a really awesome story about a reader named Dandelion who was able to get housing in six months – even though she was told it would take 5-10 years! You can check out her story here.

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Nicole is the owner and lead researcher for Low Income Relief. She has over 20 years of professional research and writing experience, and she has been solely dedicated to investigating low income topics for the last 10 years. Nicole started Low Income Relief after a personal experience with poverty. When her husband was medically discharged from the US Army, their family experienced tremendous financial hardship. Nicole was able to gather help from multiple community agencies and move into a nearby low income housing unit in just two weeks! Since then, Nicole has been dedicated to helping low income families in crisis. She regularly spends hundreds of hours combing through countless resources to make sure that Low Income Relief has the most comprehensive and complete resource directories on the internet today. Prior to starting Low Income Relief, Nicole worked as a novelist, journalist, ghostwriter and content creator. Her work has been featured in various print and online publications, including USA Today, The Daily Herald, The Chronicle and more. Her work has also been featured by Google for Publishers and other leading industry publications.

Patricia Lopez

Wednesday 10th of May 2023

I have appointment with low income housing.does that mean I'm about to get assistance

Catherine Marucci

Thursday 11th of May 2023

The time may vary, but it's a step in the right direction!

Relinda Green

Thursday 22nd of September 2022

I'm number 4 on the list how long will I be waiting

Catherine Marucci

Thursday 22nd of September 2022

That's difficult to know, Relinda. It could be soon, or they could close the list for a while, and you'll have to wait until it reopens again.

Faith

Tuesday 20th of September 2022

I had a orientation interview in April turned in all my documents copies of everything and then I checked my placement and it said not found then I got a letter saying that per my request they took me off the list well I called them Monday and told them no I did not request that and they put me back on the list and I've been number six since April and then in August I'm wondering why am I still number 6 so I'm calling and calling and calling and finally the lady I had my orientation with called and said she was going to call me that day because my file was on her desk but she couldn't find some of my documents copies of them and she knows I had to have turned them in so I had to email her a picture of my driver's license my social security card and my birth certificate because they lost it somebody stole that something happened to my identity my main identity documents at the Housing Authority place SMH so I email them to her and she called where I live and verified that I lived here in the at the end of May I'm sorry I know that I'm just psycho babbling I'm voice chatting LOL but then I asked her if she could verify through Gmail that she got my documents she did that was the first thing I've gotten from them other than my paper to attend the orientation in April and I've been on the list for 3 years mind you I was like number 27 at one time and they bumped me up like 67 and I don't know I don't understand what's going on and let's not forget they had like five people embezzle like 6 million dollars from them but then I messaged her again like the end of August because I looked on the housing waitlist and it said record not found plus I got a message on my phone saying I've been approved for Section 8 housing to click on this thing to get my voucher it looked like a scam to me so I sent her a screen both and after why it said no record found and if they did in fact send me that message and she replied back that she told me in the several emails that I had been approved and I just had to wait for the public property manager to get a hold of me to get a unit I was next on the list well that's been a month ago and she made me feel like she had an attitude towards me and that was only the second Gmail she sent me and she sent me a thing for the orientation thing that's all I've gotten from them so now I'm just sitting here waiting in a mental emotional gas lighting narcissist situation. Okay so sorry for psycho Babylon it's just been a really rough weekend my daughter got in a fight with her neighbors Friday and then they beat her with a bat Saturday and now their phones are off and I can't get a hold of them and my vehicle don't run and today is the son of anniversary that might boyfriend got hit and killed by a train so I think I'm just talking in psychobama to try to not think of being emotional okay I'm going to go but good luck to everybody

Linda Rivers

Wednesday 24th of August 2022

What do I do next after I get put on the waitlist

Catherine Marucci

Wednesday 24th of August 2022

Hi Linda. Here are some other resources you can look into while on the waiting list: https://lowincomerelief.com/housing-assistance/

kaiulani soto

Wednesday 17th of August 2022

i need to find out where i can apply or get on waiting list in my general area, i work full time and i have 2 children 5 and 15. we are currently couching it at my grandmas and school is starting so i’m full of anxiety. i really need help navigating and i’m great at following through. Rent is so outrageous right now i feel discouraged.

Catherine Marucci

Wednesday 17th of August 2022

Hi. You will probably want to start with your local Housing Authority. Here is more info on low-income housing: https://lowincomerelief.com/housing/