WAITING LIST STATUS: As of December 22, 2008, the Rental Assistance (Section 8) office is no longer accepting Housing Choice Voucher registrations.

The Rental Assistance Department administers the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher and Moderate Rehabilitation Programs, federally funded rent supplement programs designed to help families find decent, safe and sanitary housing in the private market and to help those families with the cost of rent and utilities. Under these programs the family pays between 30-40 percent of its adjusted income or a minimum of $50.00 per month for rent and utilities. MDHA pays the difference. The private owner and renter both benefit. The owner receives fair market rent for his/her property, and the family gets a decent, affordable place to live.

Property in this program must meet Nashville and HUD quality standards. Participating dwelling units must pass a Housing Quality Standards inspection conducted by the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency. The Section 8 office executes the Housing Assistance Payments Contract, provides assistance to qualified families, meets with prospective owners to describe programs, handles paperwork relating to lease-ups and renewals and assists in resolving complaints or problems of participating owners and tenants.

As of July 2009, the Agency has an allocation of 5,791 Housing Choice Vouchers, 119 units in a Single Room Occupancy program for homeless individuals, and 230 units through the Shelter Plus Care Program, a program targeted to homeless individuals and families with disabilities, for a total of 6,140 units administered by the Rental Assistance Department. Other special programs include the Family Unification Program, where Section 8 Assistance is given to those families who have had or are facing their children removed from the home where lack of suitable housing is the primary reason for the removal of the children; and the Family Self-Sufficiency program, where participants are linked to services with the goal of becoming free of all governmental assistance.

In 2000, MDHA was one of three Housing Agencies in the country selected to implement a demonstration program for Section 8 to Homeownership. Assistance for qualified families is made to a lender to assist the family with their mortgage payment. Since October 2000, more than 140 families have closed on the purchase of a home and are currently receiving homeownership assistance.