Section8Karim

10/10/2026

First rule: same rules for everyone.

Write your criteria down before you list the house, and use them on every single applicant.

Step 1. Run every applicant through MyRental.com.

Same check, same standard, every time, no matter who’s applying.

Step 2. Ask the housing authority for the family’s current and prior address, and the names and addresses of their landlords, if they have them.

They’re required to give you that.

Step 3. Call the current landlord AND the one before.

The current landlord may have their own reasons to say yes or no.

The one before has nothing to gain.

Step 4. Ask every applicant for photos of where they live now, or go see it.

Same ask for everyone, and judge only how the place is kept.

How someone treats the place they’re in now is the best preview you’ll get.

Step 5. Decide by your written criteria, and keep your notes.

If the answer is no, the reason should be on that list.

What I never screen on: race, color, religion, s*x, disability, familial status or national origin.

That’s federal Fair Housing law.

And many states and cities also protect source of income, which often includes vouchers.

Check the rules where your house is.

Screening is the one job nobody does for you.

My average tenant stays around 7 and a half years.

Fewer move-outs starts with picking the right family.

I’m hosting a LIVE training this Tuesday at 7pm ET breaking down my exact process for buying over 400+ Section 8 homes.

Comment “LINK” and I’ll send you the invite.
(for serious investors only)

10/10/2026

I’m not an insurance agent, so talk to a licensed one.

But know this before you buy your first rental.

A standard homeowners policy usually doesn’t cover business activity.

Renting out a house is a business.

You need a landlord policy, also called a dwelling policy.

What a landlord policy usually covers:

→ The house itself: fire, wind, hail
→ Liability if a tenant or a guest gets hurt
→ Lost rent while the house is being repaired

What it doesn’t cover: your tenant’s stuff.

Their furniture and belongings need their own renters policy.

Where I compare prices: Bankrate.com.

And your lender will want proof of insurance before you close.

Insurance goes into my numbers before I buy.

On one of my rentals, the mortgage, taxes and insurance together run about $580 a month.

I’m hosting a LIVE training this Tuesday at 7pm ET breaking down my exact process for buying over 400+ Section 8 homes.

Comment “LINK” and I’ll send you the invite.
(for serious investors only)

10/10/2026

Here’s what I did before I listed it 👇

Quick version: I was 17 and no bank would lend to me.

So I put “I Buy Houses” signs up across New Orleans and bought a $50,000 house in Laplace, Louisiana with seller financing.

Before I listed it, I put about $5,000 into getting it ready.

A Section 8 family can’t move in until the house passes the housing authority inspection.

Then I listed it on AffordableHousing.com.

That’s where families with vouchers look for their next home.

The housing authority paid its share directly to me under a HAP contract.

That was one house.

Timelines vary.

I still list every house on AffordableHousing.com.

405 Section 8 rentals later, I start every house the same way.

I’m hosting a LIVE training this Tuesday at 7pm ET breaking down my exact process for buying over 400+ Section 8 homes.

Comment “LINK” and I’ll send you the invite.
(for serious investors only)

10/10/2026

First, HUD publishes Fair Market Rents for every area.

Then each housing authority sets a payment standard, usually 90% to 110% of that number.

Then your rent has to pass a rent reasonableness check against similar houses nearby that don’t take vouchers.

Above the payment standard, the family pays the gap.

At move-in, their share can’t top 40% of their adjusted income.

So check both numbers.

In the cheaper markets I buy in, the math works.

My typical deal: a $60,000 to $80,000 house renting for about $1,300 to $1,400 a month.

Where people get burned is guessing.

Ask the housing authority for their payment standard before you buy, not after.

The housing authority pays its share directly to me, every month, as long as the house passes inspection.

I’m hosting a LIVE training this Tuesday at 7pm ET breaking down my exact process for buying over 400+ Section 8 homes.

Comment “LINK” and I’ll send you the invite.
(for serious investors only)

10/10/2026

Over 3 years, that’s about $11,800.

That’s close to my down payment on one Section 8 house.

Here’s the math 👇

That number is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

It counts all food away from home: restaurants, takeout and delivery.

Eat out if you love it.

Just notice where $11,800 goes in 3 years.

What a down payment that size does in one of my typical deals:

→ About 15% down on a $60,000 to $80,000 house
→ A DSCR loan covers the rest, based on the rent
→ The housing authority pays its share every month
→ Cash flow: $500 to $800 a month. My numbers, not a promise

That’s the down payment only.

Closing costs and repairs are extra.

Prices, rates and rents change, so run your own numbers.

I’m hosting a LIVE training this Tuesday at 7pm ET breaking down my exact process for buying over 400+ Section 8 homes.

Comment “LINK” and I’ll send you the invite.
(for serious investors only)

10/10/2026

They ask about the house:

→ Does it pass inspection?
→ Is the rent reasonable?
→ Does the lease have HUD’s tenancy addendum?

Education isn’t on the list.

The program cares about the house, not the diploma.

I’m hosting a LIVE training this Tuesday at 7pm ET breaking down my exact process for buying over 400+ Section 8 homes.

Comment “LINK” and I’ll send you the invite.
(for serious investors only)

10/10/2026

10/10/2026

I’m hosting a LIVE training this Tuesday at 7pm ET breaking down my exact process for buying over 400+ Section 8 homes.

Comment “LINK” and I’ll send you the invite.
(for serious investors only)

10/10/2026

The same 4 things come up on every time.

Here they are, so nothing catches you off guard (save this)

1) The family’s income gets checked.

The housing authority reviews every family’s income and household at least once a year.

Why that matters to you: the family’s part of the rent can go up or down.

The housing authority’s part moves the other way.

Your rent stays the same.

2) The house gets inspected again.

At least every 2 years.

Small rural housing authorities can go every 3.

And if a family reports a problem, the housing authority comes out faster: within 24 hours for anything life-threatening, within 15 days for everything else.

3) Rent increases.

After the first lease term (usually a year), you can ask for more rent.

You have to tell the housing authority at least 60 days before the change.

They check your new number against similar houses nearby.

That’s called rent reasonableness.

If it’s too high, they won’t approve it.

New HUD rent numbers don’t raise your rent on their own.

Your rent increase request does.

Miss the request and you miss the raise.

4) Repairs.

Things break every year.

When I run the numbers, I count repairs at 5 to 8% of the rent, and a property manager handles the calls.

Put these 4 on a calendar for every house you own.

I’m hosting a LIVE training this Tuesday at 7pm ET breaking down my exact process for buying over 400+ Section 8 homes.

Comment “LINK” and I’ll send you the invite.
(for serious investors only)

10/10/2026

If you own a Section 8 rental, here’s who it affects and what happens next 👇

HUD announced it September 29th in Notice PIH 2026-25.

It’s the Emergency Housing Voucher program.

Here’s the short version:

Emergency Housing Vouchers were a separate voucher program run by local housing authorities.

HUD is folding them into the regular voucher program.

Families leased up with an Emergency Housing Voucher as of September 30, 2026 keep their assistance.

HUD treats them as continuously assisted.

They don’t get re-screened.

Their voucher converts to a tenant protection voucher, run like any other Housing Choice Voucher.

By December 31, 2026, there won’t be any Emergency Housing Vouchers left.

Every one of them gets converted.

Your housing authority handles the switch.

Questions about a family living in your house?

Call your housing authority and ask.

One more thing...

These converted vouchers aren’t replacement vouchers.

When a family leaves the program, that voucher isn’t handed to a new family.

This is why I read the rules, not the headlines.

“Program ending” sounds scary.

The notice says the families keep their assistance.

I’m hosting a LIVE training this Tuesday at 7pm ET breaking down my exact process for buying over 400+ Section 8 homes.

Comment “LINK” and I’ll send you the invite.
(for serious investors only)