Latest on the Shutdown’s Impact on Project-Based Rental Assistance

As of Jan. 22, more than 700 rental assistance contracts have expired since the government shutdown began. The number of expiring contracts will increase as the shutdown continues. HUD anticipates approximately 500 additional contracts will expire and be up for renewal in January and 550 in February.              

Of the expired rental assistance contracts, 221 Section 8 project-based rental assistance contracts have expired. The 221 contracts that HUD didn’t renew will affect around 12,000 low-income households. Roughly two-thirds of these households are elderly or who have disabilities; on average, these households have incomes of less than $13,000 per year. HUD is determining whether it has any available funds that could be obligated to renew contracts that expired in December and is working through the processing of these contracts to determine what could be signed if funding is available.

In addition, 272 Section 202 (Housing for the Elderly) contracts have expired along with 242 Section 811 (Housing for People with Disabilities) contracts. The Section 202 program provides affordable housing to about 400,000 older adults with average annual incomes of $13,300. HUD doesn’t have the funding to renew these contracts and has proposed that private owners use their individual reserves, where available, to cover shortfalls.

For the Section 811 contracts, HUD expects to be able to use carryover money to fund January rents for the 256 Section 811 PRAC contracts that expired in December. It remains unclear if HUD has money to renew Section 811 contracts that have expired or will expire in January or February.