Section 8 Navigator
For renters
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Am I eligible for Section 8?

Eligibility comes down to three things: your household's income relative to local limits, your immigration status, and your rental history. Local PHAs add their own preferences on top of HUD's baseline rules — so the honest answer is usually "probably, but check with your local PHA."

Income limits

HUD publishes income limits by metro area and household size — "extremely low," "very low," and "low" income categories. Most vouchers are reserved for households under the extremely-low or very-low thresholds for their area. Limits scale with household size, so a family of five qualifies at a higher income than a single person in the same county.

Household composition matters as much as income

Whose income counts, what bedroom size you're approved for, and which deductions apply all depend on who is actually living in the unit — not just the total head count:

  • Elderly or disabled household members can qualify the household for additional income deductions (medical expenses, disability assistance) and sometimes priority placement on waiting lists.
  • Households with young children typically qualify for childcare-expense deductions when that care enables a household member to work or attend school, and bedroom-size determinations account for the number and ages/genders of children.
  • Adult children still living at homeare generally counted as household members — their income counts toward the total, which can push a household over an income limit even if the "primary" earners would otherwise qualify. Some PHAs treat full-time students differently; ask specifically.
  • Extended or multigenerational households (e.g., grandparents, adult siblings, or other relatives sharing one unit) are evaluated as a single household for income purposes, but PHAs vary in how they define who counts as a household member versus a live-in aide or temporary guest — this is one of the most common sources of confusion and delay, so get it in writing early.

See Your rights & the rules for how these categories affect inspections, recertification, and bedroom-size policy in more detail.

Not sure where you stand?

Try the Rent Affordability Calculator — it estimates your likely rent share and checks whether the rest of your budget will realistically hold up, so you can walk into your PHA appointment already knowing the numbers that matter to you.

Deep dives