Housing Choice Voucher

Ventura Housing is a federally funded, non-profit, public agency serving the City of Ventura. We administer a rental subsidy program called the Housing Choice Voucher Program. Program participants must find their own place to rent from a landlord or property management company using the Voucher to pay for part of the rent. Generally, the Voucher holder will pay between 30%-40% of their household income toward rent and Ventura Housing will pay the difference directly to the property owner each month. Without the participation of willing landlords, families can experience difficulty finding a good place to live.

The Ventura Housing team understands that a cooperative partnership with local landlords is critical to securing affordable housing for low and moderate-income families. Ventura Housing continually seeks out new owners and property management companies to participate in the Voucher Program.

The PHA receives its funding for the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The PHA is not a federal department or agency. A public housing agency (PHA) is a governmental or public body, created and authorized by state law to develop and operate housing and housing programs for low-income families. The PHA enters into an Annual Contributions Contract with HUD to administer the program requirements on behalf of HUD. The PHA must ensure compliance with federal laws, regulations, and notices and must establish policies and procedures to clarify federal requirements and ensure consistency in program operation.

The Section 8 Office

11122 Snapdragon Street, Suite 100, Ventura, CA 93004
Phone: (805) 647-5990
Fax: (805) 647-4691

Section 8

Portability

Your Voucher can be the ticket to move anywhere in the U.S. and live in another Housing Authority’s jurisdiction. By using portability, you may take advantage of opportunities in another area: employment, education, being closer to family or medical care. Before you pack your bags, there are many things to consider.

Outgoing Portability

What is Required in Order to Move Out of Ventura?

You must be in good standing here in Ventura with the rules & regulations governing the Voucher Program before your transfer can be approved. This includes:

  • Paying off any debt you may owe the Housing Authority
  • Complying with your current rental agreement regarding giving notice to vacate
  • Providing income & family composition information requested to update your file

Things to Keep in Mind When Moving…

You are also responsible for carefully researching your destination to ensure the area will meet your family needs, such as:

  • Safety, transportation, utility costs, weather, schools
  • Payment Standards at the new location, which could be lower or higher than ours
  • Availability of units to Voucher participants in that area

Incoming Portability

Here’s a summary of how moving to Ventura works!

  • You must fulfill all obligations to your current Housing Authority before your case worker there can approve your transfer and send us your file. Upon transfer to our jurisdiction, all of our rules, policies, payment standards and occupancy standard apply. We will conduct a background check for all drug-related or violent criminal activity in the last 5 years.
  • We provide subsidy for the City of Ventura ONLY. The other Housing Authorities in Ventura County are: Area Housing Authority of the County of Ventura; City of Santa Paula Housing Authority; City of Oxnard Housing Authority; and the City of Port Hueneme Housing Authority.
  • You are responsible for determining if Ventura meets your needs. Items to consider when relocating include: Employment, transportation, utility costs, weather, schools, etc. Do your homework before you request a transfer! Because of our desirable location, Ventura customarily has a low vacancy rate and high rents. You will want to use additional resources such as classified ads, property management companies, etc., to aid in your search.
  • Upon receipt of your file, you will be contacted 1 week to schedule an orientation meeting. With careful planning, you can experience a smooth transition to the Ventura Housing.

Moving is expensive! You will need to plan your finances carefully. In addition to your moving costs & new Security Deposit you may have to advance some rent on your own, in certain circumstances. Once your family information has been sent to the receiving Housing Authority, all of their rules, policies, and practices are in effect.

How long it will be before they process your file, how many bedrooms you can have, how long it takes to get an inspection, what they consider a reasonable rent is for their area- all these issues will be controlled by the other agency. Nevertheless, with careful planning, you can have a smooth transition to another agency.

For more information on Portability, please contact:

Ventura Housing
11122 Snapdragon Street, Suite 100
Ventura, CA 93004
Attention: Willbert Gonzales   (805) 647-5990 Ext. 3233

Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH)

The HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program combines Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) rental assistance for homeless Veterans with case management and clinical services provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). VA provides these services for participating Veterans at VA medical centers (VAMCs) and community-based outreach clinics.

Every year since 2008, HUD and VA have awarded HUD-VASH vouchers based on geographic need and public housing agency (PHA) administrative performance. The allocation process for HUD-VASH vouchers is a collaborative approach that relies on three sets of data: HUD’s point-in-time data submitted by Continuums of Care (CoCs), VAMC data on the number of contacts with homeless Veterans, and performance data from PHAs and VAMCs. After determining which areas of the country have the highest number of homeless Veterans, the VA Central Office identifies VA facilities in the corresponding communities. HUD then selects PHAs near to the identified VA facilities, taking into consideration the PHAs’ administrative performance, and sends the PHAs invitations to apply for the vouchers.

HUD has awarded funding for approximately 10,000 HUD-VASH vouchers each year in 2008, 2009 and 2010. There is at least one site in each of the 50 states, in the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. In 2011, $50 million was appropriated to serve approximately 7,000 voucher families. In addition, HUD set-aside $5.4 million from its 2010 allocation to competitively award over 600 project-based vouchers to existing HUD-VASH sites. Since 2008, a total of 37,975 vouchers have been awarded.

Section 8 Affordability Rent Calculator

Section 8 Administrative Plan (Admin Plan)

The PHA receives its funding for the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The PHA is not a federal department or agency. A public housing agency (PHA) is a governmental or public body, created and authorized by state law to develop and operate housing and housing programs for low-income families. The PHA enters into an Annual Contributions Contract with HUD to administer the program requirements on behalf of HUD. The PHA must ensure compliance with federal laws, regulations, and notices and must establish policy and procedures to clarify federal requirements and to ensure consistency in program operation.

Please note: Some chapters are presented in both Version A and Version B. Once Ventura Housing HOTMA compliance date is established, only Version A of those chapters will be applicable.

Section 8 Management Assessment Program (SEMAP)

The Section 8 management assessment program (SEMAP) measures the performance of the public housing agencies (PHAs) that administer the housing choice voucher program in 14 key areas.

The 14 key indicators of PHA performance are:

  • Proper selection of applicants from the housing choice voucher waiting list
  • Sound determination of reasonable rent for each unit leased
  • Establishment of payment standards within the required range of the HUD fair market rent
  • Accurate verification of family income
  • Timely annual reexaminations of family income
  • Correct calculation of the tenant share of the rent and the housing assistance payment
  • Maintenance of a current schedule of allowances for tenant utility costs
  • Ensure units comply with the housing quality standards before families enter into leases and PHAs enter into housing assistance contracts
  • Timely annual housing quality inspections
  • Performing of quality control inspections to ensure housing quality
  • Ensure that landlords and tenants promptly correct housing quality deficiencies
  • Ensure that all available housing choice vouchers are used
  • Expand housing choice outside areas of poverty or minority concentration
  • Enroll families in the family self-sufficiency (FSS) program as required and help FSS families achieve increases in employment income.

How does SEMAP improve program performances?


SEMAP will help HUD target monitoring and assistance to PHA programs that need the most improvement.

How does SEMAP work?

SEMAP is used to remotely measure PHA performance and administration of the housing choice voucher program. SEMAP uses HUD's national database of tenant information and information from audits conducted annually by independent auditors. HUD will annually assign each PHA a rating on each of the 14 indicators and an overall performance rating of high, standard, or troubled. Metropolitan PHAs will also be able to earn bonus points for their achievements in encouraging assisted families to choose housing in low poverty areas.

What are the 14 key indicators of performance?

The 14 indicators of performance show whether PHAs help eligible families to afford decent rental units at a reasonable subsidy cost as intended by Federal housing legislation.

What happens if a PHA does not perform adequately on any of the 14 indicators or is assigned an overall performance rating of troubled?

Either of these cases requires corrective action. HUD will conduct on-site reviews of PHAs rated troubled to assess the magnitude and seriousness of the problems. The PHA must implement a thorough corrective action plan that HUD will monitor, to ensure improvement in program management.

Payment Standards

ALL RENT REQUEST MUST MEET RENT REASONABLENESS

The maximum amount the owner may charge for a unit is determined on a case-by-case basis which, among other criteria, includes the use of a current rental survey of comparable unassisted units in the community.

Utility Allowance

Income Limits

Income Limits are subject to change on an annual basis as determined by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Please visit their website for the most current up to date Income Limits.

HUD User Datasets (Income Limits & Fair Market Rents)

Application Process

If you wish to apply please visit the Rent Café Portal.


The Ventura Housing HCV waiting lists are currently closed.

Ventura Housing maintains waiting lists with over 10,000 applicants. A self-certified pre-application is required in order to be placed on the waiting list. Ventura Housing accepts applications only from individuals who are at least 18 years of age or emancipated by state law.

Prior to being assisted, applicants are contacted by mail to determine final eligibility based on income, family composition, proof of immigration status and a clear criminal background check.

NOTICE: YOU ARE REQUIRED TO NOTIFY THE HOUSING AUTHORITY IN WRITING OR ONLINE OF ANY CHANGES IN ADDRESS.  FAILURE TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN THE WITHDRAWAL OF YOUR NAME FROM THE WAITLIST(S).

PLEASE NOTE: Preference for our waitlist/programs, are given to individuals/families that live or work in the City of Ventura.

Applications are processed and ranked by date and time received. If you are interested in applying, or have any questions regarding our application procedure, please contact our office for further information.