- The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program is renter-based, meaning it stays with the tenant, not the unit.Hemera Technologies/AbleStock.com/Getty Images
The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program is available to low-income residents of Florida. Applicants must contact their local Public Housing Authority -- or PHA -- for program applications, and contact information for the PHAs in Florida are listed on the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development website. The Housing Choice Voucher program allows participants to choose their own housing. Participants pay a percentage of their gross income for rent and the vouchers pay the remaining rent to the landlord. There are waiting lists for this program in most urban areas, thus it is easier to receive these vouchers in rural areas. After one year, applicants can "transfer out" to an urban area from the rural area. - Subsidized apartments are available, which offer HUD-subsidized rents for eligible Florida residents. Much like the Housing Choice Voucher Program, participants pay a percentage of their gross income for rent and the rest of their rent is paid to the landlord on the tenant's behalf through funding provided by HUD. These grants are property based, as the benefits stay with the unit rather than the renter. Renters apply for subsidized apartments at the property sites. Subsidized housing units in Florida are listed by city, county, zip code, complex name, number of bedrooms and type of housing on the HUD website.
- Florida women of color can get help purchasing a home with the First Time Home Buyer program.Polka Dot RF/Polka Dot/Getty Images
Florida Housing's First Time Home Buyer -- or FTHB -- program offers 30-year, fixed-rate, first-mortgage loans to buyers who meet income, purchase-price and other program guidelines. If approved for the FTHB program, participants are also afforded down-payment and closing-cost assistance. Two down-payment-assistance programs are available: one for low-income buyers and another for moderate-income buyers. Low-income participants may receive a $10,000 loan for down-payment and closing costs with 0-percent interest, at the time of publication. Moderate-income participants are given $5,000 toward down-payment and closing costs with a 10-year repayment period at a low fixed-interest rate. - Florida Salvation Army chapters offer emergency cash assistance for rent, food, clothing and utilities. They also have housing programs to help victims of domestic violence, housing assistance for AIDS patients, child care and emergency shelters for children, emergency lodging and transitional housing for women. The online Homeless Shelter Directory lists homeless shelters, transitional-housing and housing-assistance programs within Florida. Shelters are listed by city on this site.
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