HUD Creates New Landlord Task Force

Earlier today, HUD published a press release announcing that it would create a new Landlord Task Force. The task force is being created as a response to two new studies which found that most landlords do not accept vouchers and, in those instances where landlords do accept vouchers, the landlords are dissatisfied with the administrative burdens associated with the vouchers. The Department will begin a landlord engagement campaign on September 20th in Washington DC, where it will present findings from the two studies. There will also be landlord forums in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Dallas, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, and Salem, Oregon. After receiving feedback from these forums, the task force will provide policy recommendations to the Secretary to increase landlord participation in the Housing Choice Voucher program.

The two studies which served as the impetus for the creation of the task force are titled “Pilot Study of Landlord Acceptance in the Housing Choice Voucher Program” and “Urban Landlords and the Housing Choice Voucher Program: A Research Report.” The former study will be released in a month and looked at five cities: Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Fort Worth, Newark, and Washington, D.C. It found that many landlords did not accept vouchers, especially in high opportunity areas. The latter study examined three areas: Baltimore, Cleveland, and Dallas. It found that while many landlords appreciated the reliable rent payments of the Housing Choice Voucher program, they were frustrated with inspections and how housing authorities handle tenant disputes.

A summary of Pilot Study of Landlord Acceptance in the Housing Choice Voucher Program can be found here. (The full study will be released next month.)

The Urban Landlords and the Housing Choice Voucher Program: A Research Report can be found here.

The Department’s press release on the new task force can be found here.