Can the Family Lease a Unit With a Larger Bedroom Size?

The housing authority will issue a voucher to a Section 8 family after they have verified the names, ages and identification for current family members and determined their combined adjusted monthly income. A Section 8 family will be allotted 1 bedroom for every 2 people regardless of age and sex. See below occupancy standards.

With their voucher in hand, the Section 8 family often chooses a suitable unit that matches their allotted bedroom size. However, sometimes families find units larger or smaller than the bedroom size listed on the voucher. When this occurs, the housing authority must always use the smaller of the voucher bedroom size or the actual unit bedroom size.

When screening a Section 8 family, it is important to know which voucher payment standard is applicable to determine if the asking rent is affordable. Look at the voucher. Note the bedroom size of the voucher. Remember, you must compare the voucher bedroom size to the unit bedroom size and use the payment standard that is applicable to the smaller bedroom size.