HUD’s December Section 8/Housing Choice Voucher Program funds are delayed

HUD’s December Section 8/Housing Choice Voucher Program funds are delayed

Save the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program

By Lynda Carson - December 4, 2025

Times are very uncertain for Section 8-Housing Choice Voucher tenants at the moment, and many are at great risk being a HUD subsidized housing tenant at the moment.

The landlord’s subsidized housing shortfall payments for the Section 8 voucher housing program a.k.a. Housing Choice Voucher Program from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), is delayed during December 2025. The HCV, HAP payments may be delayed until next week sometime, or possibly into mid December, or later.

In the San Francisco Bay Area, according to HUD’s records, “In 2024, the Housing Authority of the City of Alameda (AHA) currently administers approximately 1,900 Housing Choice Voucher units.”

In Berkeley in 2022, “Berkeley Housing Authority (BHA) currently administers approximately 2,050 Housing Choice Voucher units..”

In Livermore in 2024, “Livermore Housing Authority (LHA) currently administers 922 Housing Choice Voucher units.”

In Oakland in 2024, “OHA currently administers approximately 14,000 Housing Choice Voucher units.”

In 2024, “The Housing Authority of the County of San Mateo (HACSM) manages approximately 5,150 Housing Choice Voucher units.”

In 2024, “Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz (HASC) currently administers approximately 5,500 Housing Choice Voucher units.”

In 2024, “The Santa Clara County Housing Authority (SCCHA) and the Housing Authority of the City of San José (HACSJ) administers approximately 19,000 Housing Choice Vouchers.”

HUD stated that funding shortfall payments for the Section 8 housing voucher / Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program would be delayed for December, 2025.

Based on the documentation available, it is not clear how many of the 3,300 PHAs across the nation are experiencing funding shortfalls. However, according to HUD, half of the PHAs are experiencing funding shortfalls.

According to a December 1, 2025 release with the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO), it says, “Earlier today, in a call to industry groups, HUD stated that shortfall payments for the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program would be delayed for December, 2025. Shortfall payments in the HCV program are payments by HUD to PHAs that are experiencing a funding deficit in the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) budget.

The Department anticipates sending the shortfall payments to banks by the end of the week through early next week. Local banks may need a few business days before making the payments accessible to housing agencies depending on the bank. The Department has stated that housing agencies may use reserves or unrestricted net position (UNP) for the payments or may delay payments if necessary.

Moving forward, the Department anticipates making another round of shortfall payments in January and believes that funding from the continuing resolution (CR) should cover HAP and administrative fee payments for January and potentially most of February. Housing agencies with questions or concerns should reach out to their HUD Financial Management Center (FMC) analyst for support.

NAHRO recommends that PHAs review section 7 of the HCV HAP contract which details when penalties may or may not be imposed for late payments to landlords.”

Additionally, according to a 12/1/2025 member update with the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities (CLPHA), in part it says, “HUD Announces Delayed December HCV Shortfall Payments.” “HUD recently shared in a call with industry groups that HCV shortfall payments may be delayed for the month of December 2025. Shortfall payments are funds HUD provides to PHAs that are facing a deficit in their Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) budget.”

HUD’s subsidized housing Section 8 voucher tenants a.k.a. Housing Choice Voucher tenants, are required to pay their portion of rent during the month of December. However, the landlords that have delayed Section 8 voucher payments from a local Public Housing Authority (PHA) in December are not allowed to jack up the rents, and force the tenants to pay extra cash under the table to make up for the funding shortfalls of the local PHAs, or HUD.

In late November 2025, HUD told the Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) (3,300 PHAs) to prepare for funding shortfalls in their Section 8 housing voucher programs.

Now in December, PHA’s are telling landlords that their Section 8 housing voucher payments are delayed, possibly into mid December, or later.

According to a release with the Boston Housing Authority, in part it says, “BHA will release 25% of December landlord payment. The remaining balance will be issued immediately upon receipt of full funding from the federal government.

The Boston Housing Authority sent the following letter to its landlord partners:

Dear Landlord/Property Manager: 

Unfortunately, the Boston Housing Authority is experiencing delays in receiving the full amount of federal Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) funding for December for our Section 8/Housing Choice Voucher program. Housing authorities like ours across the country have not yet received approval of “shortfall funding”, a mechanism that covers the gap when rental inflation outstrips the original voucher budget allocations for the year. As a result of these federal approval and processing delays at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), due in part to the federal government shutdown, our ability to release payments to our Section 8/Housing Choice Voucher Program landlords on the regular schedule has been negatively affected.

At this time, we anticipate that full HAP payments may not be disbursed until approximately mid-month. However, in order to mitigate the impact of this delay, for those who receive direct deposits, BHA will send out 25% of the monthly payment, which reflects the portion of funds we currently hold. The remaining balance will be issued immediately upon receipt of full funding from the federal government. We are hopeful that HUD will approve shortfall payments at the end of this week, and funds will become available next week, but we have not yet had formal confirmation of the timeline.
 
Please note:

This delay is solely related to the timing of federal funding, not to any issue with your documentation, inspections, or tenancy.

Our finance and program teams are prepared to process the remaining payments as soon as federal funds are received.

We will issue an update if the timeline changes further.

We understand the importance of timely payments and sincerely regret the inconvenience this temporary disruption may cause. We appreciate your patience and continued partnership during this period.
 Sincerely,


Kathlin McGonagle


Chief of Leased Housing & Admissions 
617-988-4000

In a statement by Section 8 housing activist Michael Kane, reportedly he said, “Michael Kane, director of the Mass Alliance of HUD Tenants, also believes this could discourage landlords from renting to Section 8 participants. And he’s worried about even bigger repercussions. If the delay in payment goes on more than a month I think the BHA will be forced to start figuring out where to cut tenants,” he said. “They’re not cutting tenants now, they’re cutting payments to landlords with the expectation that the money will come from Washington in time.”

In a December 3, 2025 different newspaper article, the headline says, “Section 8 Payment Delay Leaves Landlords With $700M Shortfall.” In part the story says, “Some funds earmarked for Section 8 vouchers haven’t been distributed by the federal government to hundreds of local housing authorities, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development has notified the agencies that the payments will be delayed.”

In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, reportedly, “Some Section 8 tenants in Milwaukee are facing eviction as ongoing payment and communication problems plague the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee (HACM), leaving landlords unpaid and families on the brink of homelessness.”

Meanwhile in an article of the Rhode island Current, reportedly in part it says, “Two Rhode Island nonprofits joined a federal lawsuit filed Monday by a coalition of municipal governments and nonprofit organizations challenging the Trump administration’s push to overhaul a key federal homelessness and housing grant program.

The 85-page lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island seeks to stop the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) from slashing the amount of grant funds that can be spent on permanent housing, or subsidized units that provide a stable residence for formerly homeless people, often those who have experienced mental illness or spent years on the streets. 

Lead plaintiffs include the National Alliance to End Homelessness and the National Low Income Housing Coalition, along with Providence-based nonprofits Crossroads Rhode Island and Youth Pride Inc. — among other groups and cities across the country.

The plaintiffs are challenging changes to HUD’s Continuum of Care grant program announced Nov. 13 that shift over two-thirds of the $3.9 billion program toward transitional housing and other short-term interventions for people without shelter. The lawsuit claims the new policy is contrary to “well-established and proven strategies that reduce homelessness” and jeopardize the housing of more than 170,000 people across the nation. 

The so-called “housing first” model prioritizes stable housing before offering case management, mental health treatment, substance use services, and supported employment services. Research has shown this approach leads to more long-term housing stability than programs that require residents to consent to treatment and abstain from using substances before receiving housing.”

Additionally, in Chicago, “According to the Chicago Sun-Times, CHA argued the forced termination of DEI policies could impact up to 13% of the agency’s annual budget. CHA stated it was unable to meet HUD’s Oct. 21 deadline for grant applications because the department “provided no additional information or clarification on these requirements” beyond quoting President Trump’s executive orders calling for an end to DEI government programs.

“This lawsuit is intended to secure the future of funding for our 135,000 residents throughout the city of Chicago, including thousands of senior residents and children who rely on us,” said CHA Operating Chairman Matthew Brewer. “We are asking the court to step in and provide guidance on the lawfulness of the conditions HUD is seeking to impose. This intervention is a necessary last resort since our discussions with HUD have been limited due to the government shutdown.”

In filing the lawsuit, Chicago officials pointed to a recent case involving domestic violence and housing advocacy groups in Rhode Island sued over similar anti-DEI changes to federal grant application requirements. A district court judge temporarily restricted the new federal requirements for grants, citing potential violations of the Administrative Procedure Act that prevents the federal government from enacting specific conditions on a subset of grants..”

Lynda Carson may be reached at newzland2 [at] gmail.com.

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