Seattle - King County Housing Authority will accept applications for its Section 8 Rental Assistance Program waiting list for two weeks starting Wednesday, May 23 and ending Thursday, June 7.

This opportunity allows eligible applicants to qualify for a rental subsidy, through the Housing Choice Voucher program, which can be used in the private market. Also known as Section 8, this program is the primary means of housing assistance for low- and very-low-income people provided by King County Housing Authority. Currently, KCHA’s Section 8 Program provides rental assistance to more than 21,000 residents in King County.

The waiting list has been closed since May 2006. At that time KCHA selected 2,500 households by lottery and placed them on the waiting list for this period.

As the remaining waiting list will be exhausted within the next few months, KCHA will be accepting new applications. KCHA will continue last year’s practice of placing a maximum of 2,500 names on the waiting list, covering 12 to 18 months of placements. Successful applicants will be selected through a random drawing that will be held after the list has closed on June 7. Applicants not placed on the list will be notified by the Authority following the random drawing.

Beginning May 23, those wishing to apply will have three options: (1) Applicants may apply on-line at www.kcha.org ; (2) Applicants may download an application from the same Web site and complete by hand; or (3) Applicants may pick up a printed copy at one of the following eleven locations:

Section 8 Office – 15455 65th Ave. South, Tukwila
Auburn DSHS – 2707 I St. NE, Auburn
Federal Way DSHS – 616 S. 348th St., Federal Way
Federal Way Multi-Service Center – 1200 S. 336th, Federal Way
Kent Multi-Service Center – 515 W. Harrison St., Kent
King Eastside DSHS – 805 156th Ave. NE, Bellevue
King South DSHS - 1313 W. Meeker St., #100, Kent
Mt. Si Senior Center – 411 Main Ave. South, North Bend
Northshore Family Center – 18315 Bothell Way NE, Bothell
Shoreline Family Center – 17018 15th Ave. NE, Shoreline
White Center DSHS – 9650 15th Ave. SW, Seattle

Applications not submitted on-line must be returned by mail and postmarked by June 7 to the following address:

King County Housing Authority
Section 8
P.O. Box 58550
Seattle, WA 98138

Applicants must be over 18 years old, have limited income and qualify for one of the local housing preferences to be eligible. These preferences are:

Households that are homeless or about to become homeless (through no fault of their own);
Families who are living in substandard or transitional housing; or
Families who are spending more than 50 percent of their incomes on rent.

For information about the application process, please call the King County Housing Authority Section 8 Office at (206) 214-1300.

The Section 8 Program pays rental housing subsidies – provided by the U.S.

Department of Housing and Urban Development and managed by KCHA – to private landlords on behalf of low-income households. The subsidy allows program participants to find housing in the private rental market. Generally HUD pays the difference between the rent charged by a housing owner and the assisted household’s rental contribution, usually 30-40 percent of the household’s income adjusted for family size and utility costs..

KCHA administers a range of quality affordable rental and homeownership programs for residents of King County. The Authority serves more than 17,000 households including families, elderly and disabled residents.