Public housing is housing stock that is owned by the government; federal public housing is owned by HUD and administered by local public housing agencies (PHAs).
Additional public housing has not been built in decades. Advocates are thus focused primarily on preserving the public housing stock that remains. Issues facing today’s public housing include: generally well-run public housing agencies facing significant federal funding shortfalls; policies like demolition, disposition and the HOPE VI program that have resulted in the nationwide loss of public housing units; and calls for deregulation of public housing, through the expansion of the Moving to Work demonstration program and other efforts, that come at the expense of affordability, deep income targeting, resident participation, and programmatic accountability.
For more information on public housing, contact [email protected].
Additional Resources
Resident Participation
- Resident Participation in Public Housing Part 964 Regulations Outline of Key Features (PDF, 330 KB)
- Outline of Resident Participation in the PHA Plan Process (PDF, 310 KB)
- HUD’s 2021 Guidance on the Use of Tenant Participation Fund [Notice PIH 2021-16
- NLIHC Memo to Members article describing Notice PIH 2021-16
- HUD's Guidance on the use of Tenant Participation Funds [Notice PIH 2013-21] (PDF)
- NLIHC’s Summary of Notice PIH 2013-21 (PDF)
- HUD Issues Notice on Use of Tenant Participation Funds
- HUD video about the use of Tenant Participation Funds
Section 3 Rule
- Brief Summary and Analysis of the Final Section 3 Regulation
- Detailed Summary and Analysis of the Final Section 3 Regulation
- Federal Register version of Final Section 3 Rule
- Easier to read version of final rule used in Detailed Summary and Analysis
- Sample Comment Letter
- NLIHC's Draft Comment Letter
- NLIHC's Preliminary Summary and Analysis of Proposed Section 3 Regulation (May 13, 2019)
- NLIHC’s Public Housing Parts Summary and Analysis of the Proposed Section 3 Regulation (May 13, 2019)
- Outline of Section 3 Obligation (2014) (.PDF, 195 KB)
- HUD's Section 3 Frequently Asked Questions [FAQs] (.PDF)
Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD)
Demolition/Disposition and Voluntary Conversion to Vouchers
- Demolition and Disposition (October 2025) (.PDF)
- Voluntary Conversion of Public Housing to Vouchers (March 2019) (.PDF)
Moving to Work Demonstration (MTW)
- March Modified Summary of MtW Waivers Starting with the Five Most Harmful Waivers
- March Modified Summary of MTW Waivers Following Order in Appendix 1
- Rent Reform, Cohort 2
- Landlord Incentives (Formerly Cohort 4)
- Asset Building (Cohort 4)
- Work Requirements (formerly Cohort 3) withdrawn by HUD
- MTW Archive
- NLIHC Tables Summarizing "MTW Waivers" Proposed by HUD on October 5, 2018
- NLIHC Assessment of Amended Operations Notice Proposed by HUD on October 5, 2018
- NLIHC Comments Regarding Proposed Amended Operations Notice
- NLIHC/CBPP MTW Expansion Opposition Letter (.PDF, 102 KB)
- Summary of Moving to Work Proposal (Proposed & Rejected in 2012) (.PDF, 1 MB)