Housing for People With Disabilities: Section 811, Mainstream Vouchers and Your Rights

1The programs side by side

The programs differ less in what they pay than in where you can live and how you get in.

Swipe sideways to see the whole table.

Many agencies also have Non-Elderly Disabled vouchers, a separate set for people with disabilities under 62, and Section 202 housing serves people 62 and older, as our guide to senior housing explains.

2Section 811: housing with services

Section 811 helps pay for apartments for people with disabilities, often in ordinary buildings where only some units are set aside, with supportive services available for those who want them. The program's rental assistance is meant for extremely low-income households, with income generally at or below 30 percent of the area median, and at least one adult member with a disability.

Many Section 811 units are filled through referrals from state agencies that serve people with disabilities, such as those leaving institutions or at risk of entering one, so ask your state's disability services or Medicaid agency how referrals work where you live. Services are voluntary: accepting them is not a condition of the lease. Our guide to HUD income limits explains how the area median is set.

3Mainstream vouchers: choosing your own home

Mainstream vouchers work like regular Housing Choice Vouchers: you find a rental in the private market, the landlord agrees to the program, and the voucher pays part of the rent. The difference is that they are reserved for households with at least one member who is at least 18 and not yet 62 and has a disability. That person does not have to be the head of household.

Not every housing agency has them, and those that do often give preference to people leaving institutions, at risk of institutionalization, or homeless or at risk of homelessness. Ask your local agency whether it has Mainstream or Non-Elderly Disabled vouchers and whether its waiting list is open. Our guide to Section 8 explains how vouchers, inspections and rents work.

4Leaving a nursing home or other institution

Several of these programs give priority to people moving out of nursing homes, group homes or psychiatric hospitals, because federal disability law favors community living over institutions when a person can live in the community with support. If that is your situation, the housing search usually runs through your Medicaid or disability services agency rather than starting at the housing agency.

Most states also run Medicaid's Money Follows the Person program, which helps people who have lived in an institution move back into a home of their own and can help with costs such as a security deposit, basic furniture and setting up services. Ask the facility's social worker or your state Medicaid agency whether you qualify, and whether it works with local agencies holding Mainstream or Section 811 units.

5Rent and deductions in public housing and vouchers

In public housing and the voucher programs, rent is generally about 30 percent of your adjusted income. Households whose head, co-head or spouse has a disability get a yearly deduction from income, and disability assistance expenses, such as the cost of an attendant or equipment that lets a household member work, along with large medical expenses, can also be deducted. Those deductions lower the income the rent is based on.

A live-in aide who is essential to your care can live with you without being counted as a household member, so the aide's income does not raise your rent. Our guide to public housing covers the application, and the housing calculator estimates your share.

6Your right to reasonable accommodations

The Fair Housing Act applies to most housing, public and private. It requires housing providers to make reasonable accommodations, which are changes to rules, policies or services that a person with a disability needs to use and enjoy the home. Common examples include:

• An assistance animal in a building with a no-pets rule.
• A reserved accessible parking space near your door.
• A live-in aide, or an extra bedroom for one or for medical equipment, in assisted housing.
• A change to how you pay rent or receive notices, such as a different due date that matches a benefit payment.
• A transfer to an accessible unit when one becomes available.

Ask in writing, say what you need and why it relates to the disability, and keep a copy. A provider can ask for reliable information about the need when the disability is not obvious, but generally not for your diagnosis or medical records. It can refuse only if the request would be an undue burden or fundamentally change its program.

7Modifications and accessible buildings

Reasonable modifications are physical changes, such as grab bars, a ramp or a lowered counter. In private housing, the landlord must allow them, but the tenant usually pays and may be asked to restore the unit when leaving. In housing that receives federal money, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act generally requires the provider to pay for structural changes unless the cost would be an undue burden.

Newer buildings must also be built for access. Under the Fair Housing Act, multifamily buildings of four or more units first occupied after March 13, 1991, must have accessible common areas and doors wide enough for wheelchairs, and their ground-floor or elevator-served units must include features such as reachable switches and bathroom walls that can take grab bars. For homeowners, home modifications are sometimes paid for by Medicaid home and community-based services or by USDA repair grants in rural areas; see our guide to home repair loans and grants.

8If a request is refused

If a landlord or housing agency refuses a reasonable accommodation or modification, ask for the reason in writing and whether an alternative would meet your need. If that fails, you can file a housing discrimination complaint with HUD within one year of the last incident, or go to court under the Fair Housing Act. Our guide to fair housing rights explains how to file, and many legal aid offices handle these cases at no cost.