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MILLER & STARR
REAL ESTATE NEWSALERT
ARTICLE
Section 8 Housing: Safety Net or Tangled Web?
An Overview of Section 8 Tenancy Termination
and Related Due Process Issues
By Katie R. Jones*
Main Article, Volume 23, Number 2
Reprinted in part from
Volume 23, Number 2, November 2012
(Article starting on page 111 in the actual issue)
There is no question that the federal government’s Section 8 hous-
ing assistance rent subsidy provides an invaluable safety net to impov-
erished, elderly, and disabled members of our community. The Depart-
ment of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) assists more than
2 million households by providing either “project-based” or “tenant-
based” rent subsidies through its Section 8 housing assistance pro-
gram. With the continued downturn in the economy, the waitlists for
tenants to receive Section 8 housing subsidies are rapidly growing.
The federal government has attempted to alleviate some of this bur-
den by relaxing various regulations to encourage landlords to partici-
pate in Section 8 housing programs. However, many landlords remain
skeptical about subjecting themselves to the additional administrative
burdens accompanying the Section 8 housing program, particularly in
those jurisdictions with rent control ordinances.
Despite the need for Section 8 housing, landlord participation in the
Section 8 program is not required. Once a landlord ventures into the
realm of Section 8, however, there are numerous administrative chal-
lenges associated with exiting the program. Accordingly, when weigh-
* Katie R. Jones is a litigation associate in the Walnut Creek office of Miller Starr Regalia.
