The New Hampshire Section 8 requirements refer to the eligibility criteria for the state’s Housing Choice Voucher program. The rules comply with the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) housing requirements for issuing subsidized rental vouchers to families at or below income guidelines established by HUD.
In the state, the local Public Housing Authority (PHA) offices are responsible for administering the program by accepting applications, determining eligibility and issuing vouchers based on the family’s needs.
Applicants must meet a variety of Section 8 qualifications to participate in the program. Individuals applying for a voucher must meet the definition of a family as determined by their local PHA. Anyone applying to the program must be either a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen to qualify and may not have an income that is greater than 80 percent of the median family income for their area.
Read the sections below for more information on Section 8 housing eligibility.
Per NH Section 8 requirements, applicants must qualify as a family under at least one of the conditions below.
HUD housing requirements specify that an individual or group of individuals with or without children qualify as a family. Applicants with children temporarily absent from the home due to placement in foster care are considered members of the household. Those applying for Section 8 must provide proper documentation as required by the Public Housing Authority (PHA) to support the claim.
Households where the head of the family, spouse or sole member is at least 62 years of age qualify as an elderly family. Families may also qualify as an elderly family if two or more persons in the household are at least 62 years of age. Those who are at least 62 years of age with a live-in aide also qualify as an elderly family.
For an applicant to qualify as a near-elderly family under Section 8 eligibility criteria, the household must consist of a head, spouse or sole member who is between 50 and 62 years of age or the family must consist of two or more Individuals who are between 50 and 62 years old. One or more individuals in a household between the ages of 50 and 62 with a live-in aide also qualify as a near-elderly family.
The household must have one or more individuals who have a qualifying disability under the Social Security Administration’s definition of a disability. Per the Social Security Administration, a disability is a physical or mental impairment that significantly their ability to engage in gainful work. The impairment must be one that does not prevent their ability to live independently.
Those with a disability based solely on alcohol or drug dependence do not qualify.
Section 8 eligibility rules state that students may qualify as a family if they have established a separate household from their parents or legal guardians for at least one year prior to their application. The student must be carrying a full-time class load as defined by their institution.
Individuals who do not qualify as an elderly, near-elderly, disabled or full-time student may meet Section 8 HUD housing eligibility as a single-person household. Live-in aides meet the requirements as a family member provided they are essential to the care and well-being of the person under their care, and they are not obligated for the support of the person under their supervision.
Lastly, anyone under 18 years of age who has been emancipated by court action qualifies as a family under section 8 requirements.
Applicants must meet NH Section 8 income requirements as defined by the HUD to qualify for the program. The PHA definition of income for Section 8 income limits is the anticipated total income from all sources by the head of household, spouse and each family member for the 12-month period following their date of eligibility. Program participants may earn no more than 80 percent of the median income for the area.
The New Hampshire Section 8 Income requirements specify that PHAs must include the following sources when calculating household income:
There is no limit on the number of assets that a household may have. However, the income produced by those assets are excluded from the family income calculation.
When calculating section 8 income limits, the following items are excluded:
NH Section 8 requirements specify that applicants for the voucher program must provide evidence of residency in the state and proof of legal presence in the United States. Each member of the household, regardless of age, must meet the Section 8 housing eligibility criteria for residency below.
Residents must verify their citizenship before being approved for the program by any of the following means:
In some cases, the PHA does grant housing vouchers to eligible non-citizens if they provide the following:
Non-citizen students in the country on student visas do not meet Section 8 requirements and will be considered a disqualified applicant. Any individual who does not claim a valid citizenship status or whose status cannot be confirmed must be listed as a non-eligible member of the household.
Per New Hampshire Section 8 requirements, anyone over six years of age who has a Social Security Number must verify their Social Security Number. Individuals must submit either the original Social Security card or a letter from the Social Security Administration verifying the number to comply with the Section 8 eligibility rules. The PHA may also accept other documentation that establishes the number such as:
If any member of the household is not able to readily verify their Social Security Number, the PHA will not grant a voucher until such time they can provide proper evidence.
Individuals with a history of habitual criminal activity including physical violence or drug-related activity are not eligible for the program. Individuals who have committed acts of fraud bribery in connection with public housing are automatically denied for Section 8 housing eligibility.
Anyone convicted of fraud of a federally funded program is automatically denied for life. Also denied for life are applicants of any family convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine on the premises of federal housing or those who have a lifetime registration under the state sex offender registry.
Applicants must show financial stability to meet all financial obligations including rent and utilities. As such, those with an outstanding debt to any housing authority do not qualify for the program.
To meet Section 8 requirements, all applicants to the program must be free from drug and alcohol abuse. The local PHA may waive the requirement if the applicant can demonstrate they have completed a drug or alcohol rehabilitation program or is currently participating in a rehabilitation program.
Anyone evicted from a subsidized housing within ten years or evicted from any rental housing (subsidized or not) within the past five years do not meet the section 8 eligibility requirements and are prohibited from participating in the housing voucher program.
To contact your New Hampshire HUD office, click here.