Can someone refuse to rent to me because I have Section 8/HUD/voucher? (2024)

FAQs

Can someone refuse to rent to me because I have Section 8/HUD/voucher? ›

New Jersey law also makes it illegal for a landlord to refuse to rent to a person because the person has a Section 8 voucher or another type of housing assistance. Cite: N.J.S.A. 10:5-12(g).

Refusal to negotiate for the sale, rental, or lease of housing. Informing someone that an apartment is not available for inspection, sale, or rental when it is in fact available. Denial of a home loan or homeowner's insurance. Cancellation or termination of a sale or rental agreement.

Section 8 HCV program is based on the premise that housing costs (rent and utilities) should not exceed 30 percent of a household's income. Assistance is provided to low, and very low-income households and individuals. The statewide program is available to residents of all New Jersey counties.

Landlords cannot choose renters or buyers based on a person's race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, nationality, marital or domestic partnership or civil union status, sex, gender identity or expression, disability, affectional or sexual orientation, family status or source of lawful income or source of lawful ...

New Jersey law requires landlords to cooperate with rental assistance programs. A landlord's failure to cooperate is a renter's defense to a pending eviction action.

It is illegal discrimination to take any of the following actions because of race, color, religion, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, familial status, or national origin: Refuse to rent or sell housing. Refuse to negotiate for housing. Otherwise make housing unavailable.

For example, requiring a person in a situation of homelessness to have proof of a registered address in order to gain access to housing benefits or any other social benefits would be a form of indirect discrimination, as a homeless person would have no way of obtaining a residential registration certificate.

Fair Market Rents and Section 8 Landlords

In most cases, the local housing authority, funded by HUD, will pay about 70% of a tenant's rent, while the tenant will pay the other 30%. Fair Market Rents generally determine the maximum rent that a Section 8 landlord will be allowed to charge its residents.

In addition, those who violate DCA's zero tolerance rules may be referred to the Attorney General's office for possible prosecution. As with any other tenant, Section 8 HCV assisted families can be evicted by the owner for lease violations. The eviction process is determined by state law, not Section 8 regulations.

Participants in the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs' (DCA) Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program are eligible for this program and could become homeowners provided they meet all Section 8 Homeownership Program eligibility requirements.

How do I file a complaint about housing in NJ? ›

Reporting housing code violations

To file a complaint contact the Bureau of Housing Inspection at (609) 633-6227 or BHIInspections@dca.nj.gov. Multiple dwelling units are required to be inspected periodically. One and two unit buildings do not fall under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Housing Inspection.

The New Jersey Safe Housing Act is a law that allows domestic violence victims and/or their children who are tenants to end their lease before it is over. The purpose of the law is to help victims who are tenants find safe, long-term housing. The number of this law, called the cite, is N.J.S.A 46:8-9.4.

It is important to note, that just because disability is the most common basis for filed fair housing complaints, it does not necessarily mean that it is the one that occurs most often.

New Jersey law also makes it illegal for a landlord to refuse to rent to a person because the person has a Section 8 voucher or another type of housing assistance. Cite: N.J.S.A. 10:5-12(g).

Tenant Rights to Withhold Rent in New Jersey

Tenants may withhold rent or exercise the right to "repair and deduct" if a landlord fails to take care of important repairs, such as a broken heater.

The State of New Jersey Rental Assistance Program (SRAP) is a state funded program that provides housing subsidies on behalf of very low-income New Jersey residents, for decent, safe, and sanitary housing. Persons applying must meet all applicable SRAP income and eligibility requirements.

It involves a realtor trying to intimidate a white property owner into selling inner city property and moving to the suburbs. The realtor convinces the white property owner that the neighborhood is “in decline” due to the large numbers of minorities moving into the area.

Persons experiencing homelessness are also often discriminated on the basis of their housing status or due to their lack of official address, affecting their political, economic and social rights, such as their right to participation in elections, their right to work, or their right to access certain social benefits.