A Landlord's Guide to Tenant Moves Between Jurisdictions
The Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program is designed to provide families with genuine choice in where they live. One of the most powerful features enabling this choice is portability. This is a tenant’s right to move their housing subsidy from the jurisdiction of the Public Housing Authority (PHA) that first issued it to any other PHA’s jurisdiction in the United States that operates an HCV program.
For an investor, portability presents both a unique opportunity and a specific procedural challenge. It can bring qualified tenants from other regions to your property, but it also introduces a new set of rules and an additional administrative layer. Understanding this process is not just helpful; it is essential for a smooth lease-up and uninterrupted payments.
The Core Concept: Understanding the Players
When a tenant “ports” their voucher to your area, the number of key players in the transaction expands. It’s crucial to understand who is who and what role they play.
- The Tenant (or Family): The voucher holder who wishes to move to a new area and lease your property.
- The Initial PHA (iPHA): This is the PHA that originally issued the voucher to the family. They are the “home” PHA and are responsible for the initial funding of the voucher.
- The Receiving PHA (rPHA): This is the PHA that operates in the jurisdiction where your property is located. This is the PHA you will deal with directly. They manage the local process, including inspections, rent approval, and making HAP payments.
- The Investor (You): The owner of the property who enters into a lease with the tenant and a HAP Contract with the Receiving PHA.
Eligibility to Port: The Residency Rule
A tenant’s right to port their voucher isn’t always immediate. According to the handbook, an applicant family (one that has not yet leased a unit) generally does not have the right to port their voucher for the first 12 months unless the head of household or spouse was a resident of the Initial PHA’s jurisdiction when they first applied for assistance.
Note
While this residency rule is primarily a matter between the tenant and the PHAs, it’s important to be aware of. The Initial PHA has the authority to deny a family’s request to move if they don’t meet this requirement. This is one of the first checks the PHAs will perform.
The Portability Process: A Step-by-Step Walkthrough
When a portable tenant wants to lease your unit, you are entering a well-defined process managed by the Receiving PHA (your local PHA).
Step 1: Tenant Initiates the Move
The process begins with the tenant informing their Initial PHA of their desire to move to a new jurisdiction.
Step 2: The PHA-to-PHA Paperwork Transfer
The iPHA packages the tenant’s information, including verification documents and the Form HUD-52665 (Family Portability Information), and sends it to the rPHA. This happens entirely behind the scenes.
Step 3: The Receiving PHA Takes Command
Once your local PHA (the rPHA) receives the portability package, they effectively take over the administration of the tenancy. This is a critical stage for you as the investor.
- Voucher Issuance: The rPHA will issue the family a new voucher valid for its own jurisdiction. The policies, payment standards, and deadlines of the rPHA now apply.
- Tenant Re-Screening: The rPHA may re-screen the family for any denial or termination policies it has in its Administrative Plan. For example, if the rPHA has a stricter criminal background policy than the iPHA, they can apply it. This is a crucial checkpoint, as a family eligible in one jurisdiction could be found ineligible in another.
- Application of Local Rules: The rPHA will apply its own Subsidy Standards (determining the bedroom size), Payment Standards, and Utility Allowances. This will directly affect the final HAP calculation and the tenant’s affordability.
Tip
The moment you learn you are working with a portable tenant, find the Receiving PHA’s current Payment Standards. Do not assume the payment standard from the tenant’s old jurisdiction applies. This will give you a realistic idea of the maximum subsidy available for your unit.
Step 4: The Lease-Up Process
From this point forward, the process mirrors a standard local lease-up. You will receive the Request for Tenancy Approval (RFTA) from the tenant, the rPHA will conduct a rent reasonableness analysis, and an HQS inspection will be scheduled for your unit. All of these steps are performed by the Receiving PHA.
Step 5: Voucher Expiration
If the tenant’s voucher issued by the rPHA expires before they can successfully lease a unit, the rPHA may or may not grant an extension based on its own policies. If no extension is granted, the family may lose their opportunity to port to your area.
The Critical Decision: Absorption vs. Billing
Once the rPHA has the family’s paperwork, it must make a critical decision that dictates the financial and administrative future of the tenancy. While this is a PHA-to-PHA decision, it has significant ripple effects.
1. Billing
In this scenario, the Receiving PHA acts as a service provider for the Initial PHA.
- The rPHA administers the tenancy (inspections, payments, reexaminations).
- Each month, the rPHA sends a bill to the iPHA for the full Housing Assistance Payment plus an administrative fee.
- The tenant technically remains a participant of the Initial PHA, funded by their budget.
2. Absorption
In this scenario, the Receiving PHA accepts the tenant permanently into its own program.
- The rPHA takes full financial and administrative responsibility for the family.
- The Initial PHA is no longer involved; there is no billing between the agencies.
- The family is now a participant of the Receiving PHA.
Important
The rPHA can only choose to absorb a family if it has sufficient funding available in its own budget. An rPHA with a low leasing rate may be eager to absorb families to meet its goals, which can speed up processing. Conversely, an rPHA in a high-cost area with a long waiting list is more likely to choose to bill the iPHA. This decision is entirely at the discretion of the Receiving PHA.
Dive Deeper: The Mechanics of Portability Billing
When the Receiving PHA chooses to bill, a specific financial relationship is created. Understanding this helps explain the strict deadlines and procedures involved.
The Administrative Fee
According to the guidebook, the iPHA must reimburse the rPHA for its administrative work. This fee is calculated as the lesser of:
- 100% of the Receiving PHA’s administrative fee rate.
- 80% of the Initial PHA’s administrative fee rate.
This 80% rule means the iPHA saves 20% on administrative costs by having another PHA manage the tenancy, creating an incentive for them to approve portability requests.
Strict Billing Deadlines
The process is governed by firm deadlines. The rPHA must submit its initial bill to the iPHA no later than 90 days after the iPHA’s voucher expires. Subsequent changes in billing amounts must be sent within 10 business days of the change.
Consequences of Failure
If the rPHA misses the initial billing deadline, the iPHA is generally not required to honor the bill. In this case, the rPHA is typically forced to absorb the family, whether it has the funding or not.
Warning
The strict financial deadlines between PHAs are the reason your local PHA (the rPHA) is often insistent on receiving paperwork from you and the tenant in a timely manner. A delay on your end could cause them to miss a critical billing deadline, putting the entire subsidy for your unit at risk. Promptly completing and returning all documents is paramount in a portability case.
In essence, portability is the HCV program’s expansion mechanism. As an investor, viewing it as a clear, multi-step process involving an expanded team will demystify it. Your primary relationship is always with the Receiving PHA—the local authority governing your property. By understanding their rules, respecting their deadlines, and recognizing the administrative pressures they operate under, you can successfully navigate tenant moves and broaden your pool of potential, qualified renters.