The San Diego Housing Commission’s (SDHC) Choice Communities initiative, developed under SDHC’s federal designation as a Moving to Work public housing agency, provides families that receive rental assistance with more flexibility to choose to live in neighborhoods that offer more opportunities for transportation, schools, and employment.
To increase housing opportunities through this initiative and to assist as many low-income families as possible, SDHC updates the payment standards that are used to determine the amount of rental assistance each family receives. Payment standard updates depend on funding availability.
Payment Standards
The payment standard is the dollar value of the voucher. It is the maximum amount the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher will pay toward the contract rent for an apartment or rental home, minus the applicable amount the tenant pays, known as the tenant rent portion.
Families pay a predetermined amount of the contract rent, and SDHC pays the remainder of the rent, up to the applicable payment standard, directly to the landlord. If the total contract rent for an apartment or rental home is higher than the payment standard, the tenant is responsible for paying the difference, known as the rent premium, in addition to their predetermined portion of the rent.
The payment standard is based on the lower of number of bedrooms approved for the family’s size or the size of the housing unit and the ZIP Code where the family lives.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has granted waivers to SDHC, allowing a higher payment standard for Emergency Housing Vouchers (EHV) and Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) vouchers.
Click on the Choice Communities fact sheets below for SDHC’s payment standards.
Special Moving Assistance
Security Deposit Loans
Families newly admitted to the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher rental assistance program are eligible for no-interest security deposit loans up to the lower of an amount equal to one month of the total contract rent or the payment standard.
Mobility Counseling
An SDHC mobility counselor assists with pre- and post-moving counseling, housing search assistance and guidance about neighborhood features for families newly admitted to the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher rental assistance program.
For additional information, contact the SDHC Mobility Counselor at (619) 578-7131 or mobility@sdhc.org.
Choice Communities Fact Sheet (Spanish)
Choice Communities EHV Fact Sheet
Choice Communities EHV Fact Sheet (Spanish)
Choice Communities VASH Vouchers Fact Sheet
Choice Communities VASH Vouchers Fact Sheet (Spanish)
