More Houston families have the opportunity to apply for housing assistance next week. The Houston Housing Authority is opening the waiting list for its voucher program for one week.

For the first time in four years, the wait list for the Housing Choice Voucher Program will be open from Monday, September 19th through Sunday, September 25th. Only online applications are being accepted. Houston Housing Authority President and CEO Tory Gunsolley expects as many as 85,000 applicants from low-income families, senior citizens and people with disabilities.

“We take all of the applications and then conduct a lottery to be put on the official list. Thirty-thousand is the actual waiting list. We try to shoot for about a five-year waiting list, and so we think that we’ll get through 30,000 names in the next five years.”

The voucher program is funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Gunsolley says you shouldn’t be able to tell the difference between an apartment that’s funded by vouchers and one that’s not.

“There’s no difference between a voucher family and a non-voucher family, and they could be in the apartment complex or renting a single-family home and you would never know about it. They’re indistinguishable from any other renter.”

Homeless individuals are placed at the top of the waiting list, but the lottery system builds out the rest, based on family incomes of those who are eligible.

Applications can be made here.

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