The Housing Authority administers the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV)  program in the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) of Iowa City, which includes all of Johnson and parts of Iowa and Washington Counties. This program provides rent subsidies that make it possible for low-income households to rent units owned by private landlords in the community.

Why participate? It's your choice, but did you know?

  1. You set tenant selection criteria as you would with any other tenant.
  2. We use your lease — you dictate the terms of the lease that works for your property.
  3. National background checks are completed for all new applicants looking back 5 years. We monitor area police dockets daily.
  4. Necessary program inspections are free of charge. Inspections done at move-in and every 2 years thereafter. 
  5. You may rent to as many or as few participants as you choose; landlords are not required to forever participate. If you have multiple units you are not required to rent them all or a percentage to other participants.
  6. The ICHA portion of monthly rent payments are consistently paid. On or near the first of the month, we send payment to the landlord (direct deposit is available).
  7. Consistently, more than 50% of our participants are elderly or disabled. Much of the remaining participants are lower income working families - including Veterans who were previously homeless.
  8. Participants are expected to comply with the lease and can be evicted by you and terminated from the program for lease violations. You can challenge the continued eligibility of a participant if the tenant fails to satisfy court judgments.
  9. The VASH program links housing vouchers with VA case management for veterans who are homeless.
  10. By participating, you help provide quality and affordable housing opportunities for eligible families.

Remember

  • You set tenant selection criteria.
  • The same lease used for unassisted unit tenants may be used for HCVP/VASH tenants.
  • A portion of the monthly rent is consistently paid by ICHA.
  • No continuing obligation - Have a great tenant for the past 10 years who now needs financial assistance? You can help that tenant by participating in HCVP/VASH and choose NOT to participate with any future tenant[s].
  • You can evict participants for lease violations as you would any other tenant and we continue top pay our portion during the process.

Iowa Housing Search

List available units for free by calling 1-877-428-8844 or online at iowahousingsearch.org.

City Government