Eligibility of Waiting List Applicants After New Income Limits Are Released

Q: I know that the new income limits, which HUD released on Dec. 18, must be used for all new move-in transactions. But is an applicant eligible to be housed from the waiting list if he has been determined to be eligible based on the prior year’s income limits and, just prior to the applicant being housed, new income limits are published that would make him ineligible?

A: Owners may wait until a unit is available to verify a wait-listed applicant’s income eligibility [HUD Handbook 4350.3, par. 3-6(C)(1)]. Following this guidance in the Handbook, if a unit becomes available and an applicant is selected from the waiting list, is processed for eligibility, and meets all eligibility requirements at the time of processing, the applicant is eligible to move into the unit even if new income limits have been published. This guidance is confirmed in RHIIP #293, “Timing of Income Eligibility Determinations—Clarification to Existing Policy.”