KPCB Edge

• What happens once you get confirmation of approval
• Tips on how to confirm your section 8 application is on the wait-list

Keep track of your application info.

This includes the contact info for the Housing Authority that you applied to

• Keep the date and time that you applied, your personal contact info you applied with, including your email address, phone number, physical address etc
• Keep all information about your application in a safe place that you can easily find
• You will need this information!

Give your Housing Authority time to process your application.

Depending on how you applied, it will take some time to process your application, it could be minutes, days or longer

• After applying you will receive a notice that your application has been processed or is being processed

Confirm that you are on a housing wait-list.

After applying for section 8 your Housing Authority Office will notify you that your application has been received

This is typically done either by email or mail You will then be given instructions that your application is on the local section 8 housing choice voucher wait-list and you will be contacted again once your application reaches the top of the wait-list

This process can take months or years depending on the area where you applied

However, if you applied and were never contacted about your application then you must confirm that your application is on the wait-list

Many applicants don’t reach the wait-list due to an error with their application and need to re-apply

Failing to confirm your wait-list status is a common but costly mistake Many Section 8 applicants fail to confirm their application status after applying and waste valuable time

• Be sure to confirm that you are on the Section 8 Voucher wait-list by following this link

If you are in need of emergency housing, check out this article: Emergency Housing Assistance

Be Available and respond to all communications from the PHA

• Be sure that the contact information that you used on your Section 8 application is still correct and that your PHA can easily reach you
• If your contact information changed, be proactive about informing the PHA about any changes with your contact info
• Your PHA may send out a Waiting List Status Update Letter if you have been on the waiting list for a year or a considerable period of time
• This letter is to confirm that your contact info is still accurate and that you are still in need of rental assistance
• You must respond or you will be removed from the waiting list
• Your PHA will contact you to set up a Housing Briefing Meeting once you have reached the top of the waiting list and resources are available
• This meeting is to make sure you understand the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program and are ready to receive your voucher
• There may be other reasons why the PHA would need to contact you
• They may have questions about your application for a variety of reasons
• Please be sure to respond to all communications and notifications from the PHA that require a response
• If you have any other questions about your application it is best that you contact your housing authority where you applied and ask them directly

You don’t need to do this daily but if you are unsure about anything it is best that you don’t wait

• Be diligent and get your questions answered

We are confident that if you follow these steps and pay close attention  to the directions given by your PHA that you will increase your chances of reaching the top of the housing wait list

Leave a comment if you have any other questions about what to do after applying for section 8 and a member of our staff will respond

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