Tulsa has nearly 1,600 property managers actively enrolled in the Section 8 program, which provides federal funds to pay part of a tenant’s rent. But that’s not enough to keep up with growing demand
The National Apartment Association offers a flowchart describing how landlords can qualify to receive Section 8 subsidies, with various paths through the bureaucracy branching off in multiple directions until the page becomes a tangled maze.
The best-case scenario, if all goes smoothly, includes nine steps. And that’s why some Tulsa landlords say they would rather not bother with the federal program, especially when demand for housing is as high as it is right now.
With a shortage of affordable housing in general and Section 8 housing in particular, more than 350 Tulsa families currently have vouchers but can’t find places to use them, officials said.
Many landlords assume that “‘this is a government program, and so there’s going to be a lot of red tape,’” said Ginny Hensley, vice president for communications and public affairs at the Tulsa Housing Authority.
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But the process isn’t as complicated as property managers might think, she said. And once enrolled, the steady income can make the effort worthwhile.
“So far this year, we’ve added 61 new landlords,” Hensley said. “We aren’t seeing a decrease. In fact, we’re seeing the opposite.”
Tulsa has nearly 1,600 property managers actively enrolled in the Section 8 program, which provides federal funds to pay part of a tenant’s rent. But that’s not enough to keep up with growing demand as high inflation puts more and more families under financial stress, Hensley said.
“The need is already great and continues to grow,” she said. “A lot of folks who never thought they would need a subsidy, who always thought that they would be able to take care of things completely by themselves, are finding themselves in need of help just because of the economy right now.”
Under Section 8, tenants generally pay about 30% of their income toward rent while a federal voucher covers the rest. In Tulsa, the vouchers typically range from $646 to $925 a month, depending on the size of the family and household income, officials said.
Landlords receive the vouchers even if tenants fall behind on their share, which is probably the biggest incentive for housing providers to participate in the program, officials said.
Nationwide, however, about 10,000 landlords a year quit the program, with most blaming “bureaucratic frustrations” for driving them away from Section 8, according to the National Apartment Association, an advocacy group for housing providers.
“There are issues and inefficiencies with the housing choice voucher program,” said Keri Cooper, executive director of the Tulsa Apartment Association, “which is why it is challenging to find housing providers to take vouchers.”
To reform the application process, both the local and national apartment associations have endorsed the Choice in Affordable Housing Act, currently under consideration in Congress.
The proposed legislation would increase incentives for housing providers and remove some regulatory requirements while streamlining applications and inspections. In short, the bill would make it easier and faster for landlords to sign up.
Tulsa landlords don’t object to the source of Section 8 funding, Cooper said.
“It’s the strings that keep housing providers from wanting to participate in the housing choice voucher program,” she said. “If changes can be made to the program to make it more efficient, I think we will see more housing providers willing to participate.”
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Tulsa World Newsroom podcast March 2022: The rising cost of living in Tulsa
Tulsa World Staff Writer Michael Overall talks about his reporting on evictions and rising rents in Tulsa with Editor Jason Collington. Overall also talks about what he tries to do in his Sunday column, where he ties current events back to Tulsa’s history.
