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section 8

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VA’s Work to End Veteran Homelessness Is a Nationwide Model. Can It Translate for Civilians?

The VA's program doesn’t completely meet the needs of all unhoused veterans, but it’s close. That stands in stark relief to the non-veteran population. 

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A collage of photos from stories that appeared on Shelterforce, with 2023 etched in the center.
Community Development Field

Shelterforce’s Top 10 Stories of 2023

What were the biggest Shelterforce stories of the year? We count down the top 10 of 2023.

Open door to a new home with key and home shaped keychain.
Housing

A Critical Look at the Section 8 Program, a Webinar

In September, Shelterforce’s Shelby R. King was invited to participate in a virtual “Housing Hangout.” Panelists discussed the history of the Section 8 program, its strong points and failings, and ideas for large-scale reforms.

Closeup of a weatherbeaten wooden sign that says Vacancies in block letters across the top, and underneath that, No, and underneath that, another No.
Housing

LA Isn’t Enforcing Its Section 8 Discrimination Ban. Could This Lawsuit Change the Tide?

In 2019, Los Angeles passed an ordinance banning discrimination against Section 8 voucher holders. But it has never sued to enforce the protection.

A surface covered with (and hidden by) $100 bills
Housing

Landlords on Notice: Section 8 Discrimination Will Cost You

Landmark lawsuits in D.C., New York, and California make source of income discrimination risky for landlords. 

Policy

How to Make Universal Vouchers Actually Work

If Congress gave the Housing Choice Voucher program enough money to serve every income-eligible applicant, what other reforms would be needed so every voucher recipient could find a decent home in a suitable area?

A sign for an essential worker.
COVID

Your Essential Worker May Be a Voucher Holder

How housing assistance programs benefit all of us—and why they should stop leaving people behind.

close-up image safety net of rope
Housing

Expanding Housing Choice Vouchers Would Strengthen the Safety Net

It’s time to mend the housing safety net. The COVID-19 crisis has thrown light on the fragility of millions of American families for whom a missed paycheck forces a decision […]

Landlords commonly refuse to rent to voucher holders, a practice known as “source of income discrimination.”
Housing

Section 8 Voucher Holder Denied Housing

Despite having a housing voucher—a legal source of income—a Buffalo, New York, woman could not find a landlord who would rent out their property to her.

Q: Can Prohibiting Source-of-Income Discrimination Help Voucher Holders?

A: Yes. Landlords in most places can discriminate against voucher holders, and many do. This often keeps voucher holders in a few segregated neighborhoods.

supporters of ban income bias bill
Housing

Section 8 Allowed

Early research shows that laws prohibiting discrimination based on source of income may improve outcomes for Housing Choice Voucher holders.

We ask: What don't people who are getting rental assistance get a job? The Answer: More than half are elderly or disabled. Of the rest, most of them do have a job!
Financial System

Q: Why Don’t People Who Get Rental Assistance Get a Job?

A: More than half are elderly or disabled. Of the rest, most of them do have a job! Ninety-four percent of rental assistance receipts are …

Community Control

Co-ops: Resistance to Living in the Land of the Lord

For Section 8 recipients, a step toward economic mobility (and community control) can be limited-equity cooperatives. A Section 8 voucher can be used to pay some of the monthly carrying costs of a co-op unit.