Section 8 Rental - Do You Have Experience as a Landlord?

One other reason not to take Section 8. It is ridiculously difficult to evict them. And they can legally stop paying rent once you try to and it can go on for months before you can get them out. Stay away from it S.. You really don't need the headaches.

I thought Daisey F. gave a great answer. Another thing I could add is Drive by their place where they live now. If the outside looks great go up and knock on the door. If they answer ask if they have a second phone # for you to get ahold of them, or some other rather silly question. Doing this I have ran into....{1} The worst trash yard I have ever seen. (didn't even stop), {2} outside looked okay so I knocked on the door and someone other then the applicant answered. (They didn't live there. I asked.) {3} most do live there and you either like the inside or you don't. If they yell at you, ( I only had one in the last 15 years) , don't rent to them. Most are extra sweet. Also standing there for a sec. before knocking can tell you alot. One of my worst renters was a Section 8, But my Best ever was also a Section 8. Another thing I have ran across... If you call their present landlord If they say everything wonderful an great about the person, they might just be a friend, or one that I have great fondness for...Not... they , the landlord, wanted them gone so bad that they lied, said they were great and oh so sorry to have to see them go. As far as he was thinking, their poop smelled like Apple pie. We ended up spending MORE then $10,000.00 after we had to go to court to get them out. And that was not counting 3months back rent. Do the drive by. If they are from out of town, Pray. Good luck.

Yes we have rented to section 8. It depends on what kind of family you get to rent. Unfortunately we had bad renters, destroyed our house. We have had renters that were not section 8 and the same happens. I really would not rent to anyone unless you do a credit check. Check with the last two places they have lived. It is hard to pick good ones from bad ones. Just make sure you check them out well.

Here is a trick my FIL used. He always looked inside their car to see if it was spotless or dirty. He would ask how long they had the car. Act like he was interested in it. I know it sound strange but he would never rent to a person with a dirty car. He also checked out shoes, for some reason if they had real worn out dirty shoes he would not rent to them. We started using doing the same thing. We have had great renters since then.

Make sure they don't smoke and not pets!

Good luck!!!

I used to work for a company that had some rental houses, and I was responsible for collecting rent and so on. We did section 8 and HUD for a while, and it was crazy. First of all, these houses were in great shape, but It took us several months to get them up to the standards they require for section 8 housing. It was a lot of expense and trouble for things that seemed totally unnecessary!

Here is a partial list I found to give you an idea: http://pages.sbcglobal.net/stillwater_ha/_wsn/page15.html

Also once you are approved and get a tenant, it's not over. You are responsible for keeping things up to code even if the tenant doesn't try. We had an older lady who was somewhat of a hoarder, and we failed several inspections because all her clutter was a "fire hazard." The landlord talked to her, and some people even offered to go in and help her clean up, but she refused to do anything about it. Eventually we lost the section 8 on that house and we had to evict her because she couldn't pay her rent otherwise. Since I left that job they've stopped doing section 8 on all the properties because it was just too much work.

Depending on the neighborhood, I'd say you have just as much chance of getting a good or bad tenant whether you go with section 8 or not. Definitely make sure you do credit checks and talk to previous landlords. The eviction process is really tough, and there's lots of loopholes for the tenant where you can't pursue missed rent after they leave.

It's smart to sign an agreement with anyone you take on as a tenant, just in case you have problems later. I can get you a copy of the landlord/tenant agreement we used to use, message me if you are interested.

Where the money comes from is not the best question to ask when renting. It's who will be living in the house....there are good people and bad people, people who will treat your home like *you* own it and will be respectful and some who won't. Section 8 subsidies don't automatically assume a person is good or bad.

The one thing that stands out at me is this: You are trying to sell your own home. This should mean your home is in pristine condition (if it's not, maybe that's why it's not selling). No renter, none, will keep your home in pristine condition....as long as someone is living there, wear and tear will happen.

If you're planning on turing the house into an investment property and treating it as such, then by all means, rent it out. If you want to sell it "in a year or two when the market picks up" then I'd personally advise against renting. Too many houses get trashed out -even by well meaning renters- and you'll cry over how badly you're things will get treated. Then dump a bunch of money into the home to get it "pristine" again.

Sorry if this sounds harsh, but I've been there and done that too much...and helped local friends in your boat....I've been a LL for over 10 years and I would never, ever consider renting out my own home. GL!

I have never rented to anyone on Section 8 but I have certainly known a lot of people on it (mostly single mothers who needed a little help). Just like with everything else, some are good, some are bad. Perhaps you could contact HUD and ask them for contact information on fellow Section 8 landlords (I don't know if that is private info or not) and seek opinions there. Incidentally, I despise shoes and wear flip flops when I must wear shoes and my house is in fine condition.

I've never been a landlord before but I would personally stay away from Section 8. I speak from living in a neighborhood that allowed a section 8 family to move in and all it brought was trouble. We moved out because it was so bad.

I sent you a private message but I wanted to say I agree with Leah H. but I am not going to move due to these people I have lived and owned this home for over 37 years and raised all of my kids and now my grandkids know this as grandma's house. I refuse to move. Keep in mind not every one on section 8 is trouble and I believe everyone deserves help and a second chance but I don't think we as tax payers should be paying for people that have never worked, that smoke and drink and don't take care of their kids to live and do what they want and not work. I am also not saying that just because you are on section 8 you don't work. I don't mean to offend anyone.

We have a rental property and we have in the past leased it to a Section 8 tennant. We had to sign some paperwork and then about once a year, an inspector would come in and make sure everything was up to code. If they found some unacceptable items in the house (i.e. heat not working, safety issues) they would present us with a list and then schedule a follow up appointment to make sure the items were fixed. Overall it has been a pretty good experience.

There are good and bad experiences with anyone you rent to. The biggest problem I came up with in regards to Section 8 was making sure everything was up to code. I have an older house, so if your house is newer, you might not have as many problems. It is harder to evict when dealing with Section 8, but not impossible. It is a guaranteed check each month, but as other people mentioned, if you are trying to sell the house and need it to be in very good shape anytime you have a showing. Anytime you rent to anyone with kids, it is harder to evict. Make sure no matter how you go that you have a lease. I would also suggest putting in there a once a month inspection. This way, you can catch any potential problems quickly. Tenants are not real good about reporting problems, unless it directly effects them. And, if you will still have the property for sale, this gives you a chance to make sure all the lightbulbs are ok, just check for minor things that might make a difference in a sale. If you have any questions, please send me an email and I'd be happy to help you. I have had rental property for years and also worked for a lawyer, doing collections and evictions.

We had second 8 renters in a house we owned in Cleveland, 0hio-a horrible experience. We were "given" renters by the program who could have cared less about our property (a lady used a garden hose to "wash" the wall-to-wall carpet).We had an inspector for the program that cited us for anything the renters did (broken windows, dented siding, broken gate, bugs in house, etc), so we paid fines and repair bills constantly. We finally sold the house at a loss just to get out from under the section 8 contract and inspections.

I wouldn't do it. My neighbor is section 8 and my landlord told me that he has to fix everything even if she did it. He is trying to evict her cause she and her kids are damaging his apartment and is having a hard time. The government won't let him evict her. She was already there when he bought the apartments so he didn't have a choice in the matter. I would be very careful if I were you. I know that not all section 8 ppl are bad but there are the ones that make it tuffer for others. I know that if my landlord can get them out he would not do it again. And that is not fair to the good ppl out there but he does have the right to protect his property. I don't care what kind of checks you do there is more that meets the eye. Good Luck!

I was told once by my landloard he always did a police check and a credit check for tenents that were section 8. I know they do the police check here where I live. It's for their security and the security of other residences. I was not offended because I saw it as a safety measure for me personally. No one wants to live with a child molester or raptist or even a drug dealer if they can help it.

If you can rent it without going Section 8, that's what I'd do.

We've had both Section 8 and non-Section 8 and we've had for the most part all good tenants. Some I didn't love, but the rent showed up (eventually) and the only issue we had was someone leaving without notice.

One of our best renters was Section 8 and you're right anyone can be a good or bad renter.

I hate the hassle of being a landlord anyways, so I prefer going non-Section 8 just because it's just that much more effort.

RockinGrandma gave you good advice.

Unfortunately I sort of do minimal checks and try to rent to whom I think is the best based on the feel I get. I'm usually right, but have been wrong on occasion.

Good luck.