Apply for Housing

Public housing is limited to low-income families and individuals. The local housing authority determines your eligibility based on: 1) annual gross income; 2) whether you qualify as elderly, a person with a disability, or as a family; and 3) U.S. citizenship or eligible immigration status. If you are eligible, the housing authority will check your references to make sure you and your family will be good tenants. Housing Authorities will deny admission to any applicant whose habits and practices may be expected to have a detrimental effect on other tenants or on the project's environment.

Housing Authorities use income limits developed by HUD. Income limits vary from area to area so you may be eligible at one housing authority but not at another. The income limit for the Hillsboro Housing Authority is available by clicking here.

For additional program rules and requirements, check out our Admissions and Continued Occupancy Policy by clicking here.

Contact us with any questions you may have; we'd love to talk with you about our apartments.

HOW DOES THE APPLICATION PROCESS WORK?

The application must be completed in full. The Hillsboro Housing Authority (HHA) needs to collect the following information to determine eligibility:

1. Names of all persons who would be living in the unit, their sex, date of birth, and relationship to the family head;

2. Your present address and telephone number;

3.  Family characteristics (e.g., veteran) or circumstances (e.g., living in substandard housing) that might qualify the family for tenant selection preferences;

4.  Names and addresses of your current and previous landlords for information about your family's suitability as a tenant;

5. An estimate of your family's anticipated income for the next twelve months and the sources of that income;

6. The names and addresses of employers, banks, and any other information the HHA would need to verify your income and deductions, and to verify the family composition; and

7. The HHA may also visit you in your home to interview you and your family members to see how you manage the upkeep of your current home.

You will need to provide whatever documentation is requested (e.g., birth certificates, tax returns) to verify the information given on your application. The HHA will also rely on verification from your employer, etc.  You will be asked to sign a form to authorize release of pertinent information to the HHA. 

After obtaining this information, the Hillsboro Housing  Authority's Executive Director will describe the public housing program and its requirements, and answer any questions you might have. Your completed application will be date stamped to determine your placement on our waiting list. Applicants who submit ALL of the required forms and documents will advance above applicants who does not submit the required forms and documents.

WAITING LIST

Applicants who have fully completed and returned an application to us will be added to our waiting list. Positions on the waiting list are determined by the date and time of when the fully completed application AND supporting documents were received by the housing authority.  Applicants who have a "working preference" advance over applicants who don't qualify for this preference. The "working preference" is for applicants who receive Social Security benefits or who work  a minimum of 20 hours per week. To check on the status of waiting list, click here.  If you've already applied and were accepted to our waiting list, you can check your position on the waiting list by matching  your application date and application number or your document ID number (if applicable). We currently do not have any openings.  

INCOME-BASED RENT

Your rent, which is referred to as the Total Tenant Payment (TTP) in this program, would be based on your family's anticipated gross annual income less deductions, if any.  HUD regulations allow housing authorities to exclude from annual income the following allowances: $480 for each dependent; $400 for any elderly family, or a person with a disability; and some medical deductions for families headed by an elderly person or a person with disabilities. Based on your application, the Executive Director will determine if any of the allowable deductions should be subtracted from your annual income. Annual income is the anticipated total income from all sources received from the family head and spouse, and each additional member of the family 18 years of age or older.

The formula used in determining the TTP is the highest of the following, rounded to the nearest dollar:

(1) 30 percent of the monthly adjusted income. (Monthly Adjusted Income is annual income less deductions allowed by the regulations);

(2) 10 percent of monthly income;

(3) welfare rent, if applicable; OR

(4) $50 minimum rent 

FLAT RENT

HUD requires that Public Housing Authorities offer families the choice of paying income-based rent (generally up to 30% of adjusted income) or a flat rate rent, which is based on the market rent charged for comparable units in the private unassisted rental market. The Hillsboro Housing Authority's current Flat Rent rate is $350.00 per month. For a more detailed look at Flat Rent vs. Income-Based Rent, click here.