PHA staff reported a case in which a long-time Housing Choice Voucher participant ported a voucher to Snohomish County to be near medical providers and successfully used the agency’s Section 8 homeownership program to purchase a home. The staff member said the authority is one of about 14 PHAs in Washington state that maintain a Section 8 homeownership option and that roughly 30–31 participants have purchased homes with a voucher subsidy applied toward mortgage payments.

Staff described the homeownership program as administratively challenging but as another tool the PHA uses to expand housing options. Commissioners asked how lenders treat the subsidy; staff said in most cases lenders treat the voucher subsidy as income when qualifying borrowers and that USDA Section 502 loans are the common financing source currently willing to work with the program, though staff noted at least one other lender-type exists. Staff offered to provide a more detailed briefing on the mechanics of the program and financing at the next meeting.

Staff also noted that the program often works in concert with the PHA’s mutual self-help housing program and that participants sometimes secure financing and mortgage arrangements that pair with the voucher subsidy. Commissioners requested a future presentation that outlines how the subsidy is applied to mortgage payments and the financing arrangements that have succeeded locally.