July 18, 2002
Barry Hopkins had been living in Section 8 housing for a year when he got a sudden opportunity. The single father of three, who works as a cook and dietary aide for Reston Hospital, found that he did not have to keep receiving rental subsidies through the Section 8 program.
Instead, he discovered, he could shift those subsidies to pay for his own home, through a pilot program run by the Fairfax County Housing Authority. The new Housing Choice Voucher Program would help him with the down payment, and with mortgage costs for up to 15 years.
"I went down there and kept inquiring about it and then finally they got the program up and running," he said. "This is the American dream, to own your own home and build your credit."
Hopkins and his family will move into a home of their own in Herndon later this month.
THE HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHER program was first proposed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development in 1999 as an optional program for Housing Authorities across the country. The idea was to move people who receive help with their rents into homeownership.
According to John Callahan, director of public affairs for the Department of Housing and Community Development, many of the details of the program were left up to the jurisdictions. "HUD headquarters has really gone out of its way over the past few years to listen to housing authorities, to try to make it more user-friendly for everybody."
The Fairfax County Housing Authority, the policy-making branch of HCD, is one of the first jurisdictions in the area to launch the program. Staff at HCD spent the last couple of years determining eligibility requirements for participants, reviewing applications and setting up homeownership classes for participants. On April 26, the Housing Authority gave 25 families grants to use towards the purchase of their first home.
The authority must have been in Section 8 housing for at least a year, and must meet certain income requirements. They also need not to have filed for bankruptcy in the past seven years, and must show a letter of recommendation from a former landlord.
Before receiving their vouchers, the 25 families were required to go to several homeownership classes where they learned about financial management as well as the basic principles of home repair. The participants now have 240 days to use their vouchers to close on a home. If they do not find a home within that time they will lose their benefits.
"We were looking for people who would have a high chance of success," said Michael Finkle, director of housing management for HCD.
Callahan stressed that the pilot program was kept small to ensure that participants received the attention they needed. He added that no additional money was allocated from HUD for the program.
Hopkins said the classes were particularly beneficial for him.
"We really got to ask a lot of questions. They really gave us a lot of information," he said. "We just rent and we don’t know what goes on behind the scenes when things break down."
THE HOUSING AUTHORITY has tried hard to differentiate the Housing Choice Voucher program from Section 8 programs. Over the years, the Section 8 program has become unpopular with some landlords, a pattern the Housing Authority did not want to replicate with realtors.
"You get one bad tenant in the [Section 8] program and it will sour you forever," Callahan said.
"It’s a lot of negative mythology you have to overcome," agreed Finkle.
Section 8 subsidies can only be used for renting and do not come with time limits, although subsidies fluctuate with the incomes of participants. In addition, rental subsidies can only be used in selected developments where they are accepted.
By contrast, housing choice vouchers can be used anywhere in the county. Participants use the vouchers to give them an advantage in the red hot real estate market, but cannot use them to purchase units whose prices have been kpet low by the county to make them affordable to lower-income families. Housing Choice Voucher program participants must compete with other potential homebuyers for properties, claiming the vouchers as a source of income when applying for home loans. The vouchers are also set to expire after 15 years.
The average voucher is slightly less than $700 a month, according to Finkle, a little lower than the average Section 8 subsidy. The average annual income of the 25 families in the program is $25,395.
THE PROGRAM has not been without its frustrations. According to Hopkins, the biggest concern among participants was the fact that their vouchers were limited to Fairfax County, where skyrocketing prices and tough competition make it difficult to close on a home within the set 240 days.
Even though the vouchers gave him a boost, he said, "it’s very hard to find a home at your level of income."
He added that he would have liked to have looked in Loudoun or Prince William counties. "You get more house for your money there," he said.
Voucher program participants were also not allowed to use their vouchers to participate in the county’s first time homebuyer’s program, which gives selected low cost units to lower income families through a lottery system.
"I feel that if they have these people on this [voucher] program, they should try to get them one of those houses," said Hopkins. "But then again, there are other people out there looking for their first home and they need their break too."
But Barbara Silberzahn, senior housing specialist with HCD, said voucher program participants are restricted to Fairfax County because neighboring jurisdictions do not yet have similar programs. If Loudoun or Prince William counties launch a similar pilot program, an agreement between their respective housing authorities would be conceivable, she said.
Voucher program participants are also not allowed to take part in the first time homebuyer’s program because it is governed by the county’s zoning ordinance. A change in zoning regulations would be required before voucher program participants are allowed in the first time homebuyers’ program, she said.
Still, despite these frustrations, Hopkins said he would recommend the voucher program. "It’s just obstacles you have to go over," he said. "You have to believe in God and keep trying."