For Current Residents
If you live in affordable housing subsidized and/or managed by the King County Housing Authority, you may have questions about your program, including supportive services that might be available. KCHA offers many housing options, including three mid-rise buildings – the new Nia Apartments in White Center, Northridge I in Shoreline and Plaza 17 in Auburn – that give residents the choice of living in a non-smoking environment.
The Housing Authority also is committed to providing Reasonable Accommodations to qualified persons with disabilities so that their living arrangements are, as a whole, comparable to that of other residents.
The Subsidized Housing section has information about Public Housing or other KCHA-managed housing. The Housing Choice Voucher section has information for residents of Private Housing subsidized through KCHA.
Social Services for Residents
KCHA spends more than $2 million each year in support of resident services. For more information about services available at your community and others, you can go to the Social Services section. The Housing Authority provides assistance directly, through support services coordinators who work with seniors and younger disabled households in KCHA mixed-population mid-rises, and through a wide range of nonprofit agencies with whom KCHA contracts. You can learn about social services provided at or near KCHA communities by consulting this list. The list is interactive, so you can search for specific programs.
Links to Other Housing Resources and Services
You can find other useful links on this site with information about additional affordable housing resources, including links to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, nonprofit housing providers and other housing authorities.
Low-income individuals and families can learn about how obtain food assistance by going to the Web site for the Washington Basic Food Program. Applications for food assistance are available in Cambodian, English, Korean, Laotian, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Tagalog, Tigrigna, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese.
Rent Reform
In 2008, the King County Housing Authority started a review of its existing policies related to checking residents' income and calculating their rent for the Public Housing and Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher programs.
KCHA wants to make its current policies easier for residents to understand and more respectful of their privacy. The Housing Authority also wants to make its policies easier for KCHA staff to administer.
There are two parts to this process:
- Part one - Easy Rent: Simplify how rent is calculated for seniors and residents with disabilities on fixed incomes.
- Part two - WIN Rent: For work-able adults and working families, improve policies related to checking income and calculating rent and encourage work and increased savings.
Easy Rent
In 2008, KCHA approved several changes to its rent policies for seniors and residents with disabilities on fixed incomes, now known as the Easy Rent program. The Easy Rent program was rolled out over a 12-month period starting November of that year. Additional improvements and changes to the Easy Rent program were approved in 2010.
More Information about Easy Rent
WIN Rent
In July 2010, the King County Housing Authority Board of Commissioners approved WIN Rent, the second phase of KCHA’s rent reform initiative. WIN RENT will focus on families that include an adult who is either working or “work-able”.
- Effective June 1, 2011: All new housings, transfers and interim reviews will be processed using WIN Rent rules.
- Effective October 1, 2011: Full recertifications (formerly “annual reviews”) for current households will be processed using WIN Rent rules.
For more information about WIN Rent please click here or click below for your language.
(Cambodian, Korean, Russian, Somalian, Spanish, and Vietnamese)
If you want to share your thoughts or ask questions, please e-mail rentreform@kcha.org or mail your comments to KCHA Rent Reform Initiative, Attn: RENT REFORM, 600 Andover Park W., Tukwila, WA 98188.
Emergency Preparedness
World events remind us that disaster can strike at any time. You can limit the effects of a natural or man-made disaster on you and your family by preparing in simple ways described below. You can also always consult the American Red Cross.
The King County Housing Authority recommends that residents and their families prepare emergency information cards, with phone numbers of out-of-state relatives and emergency meeting places, and carry those cards with them at all times.
Details about emergency information cards
KCHA also cautions residents to have an emergency water supply on hand. To be safe, you should store at least a three-day supply for each family member (at least three gallons).
Learn how to purify water if necessary