It is illegal to deny an apartment to a renter who uses a housing voucher or subsidy to pay the rent. Unfortunately, this kind of discrimination still occurs.

According to Stephanie R. Rudolph, an attorney at the Legal Aid Society in an interview for Brick Underground, typically, you need an income of 40 times the rent to rent an apartment but that requirement does not apply for voucher holders. 

The maximum rent for the voucher program depends on the voucher program itself and sometimes the zip code in which the apartment is located. It's important to look for apartments within or below your payment standard because this is the maximum amount of subsidy the government agency will pay for an apartment of a certain size. The payment standard includes all utilities but be aware because some listings don't say what utilities are included.

Once you find an apartment, it needs to be inspected to make sure it meets specific codes. If there are complaints and violations it could be a red flag. The priority is to find safe housing with the use of your voucher.

If you believe you have been discriminated against because you have a voucher, please do not hesitate to reach out to us today.

Myers, E, (2023) A landlord won't accept my housing voucher to rent an apartment. What can I do? Brick Underground https://www.brickunderground.com/rent/ask-an-expert/landlord-wont-accept-housing-voucher-source-income-discrimination-nyc-action