There are numerous residential buildings in New York City which participate in the Section 8 program of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Section 8 program provides assistance to eligible low and moderate income families to rent housing in the private market. Eligibility for this program is based on a family’s gross annual income and family size.
There are numerous private landlords in New York City and elsewhere which participate in the Section 8 program. However, when a private owner participates in this program, it must be aware that the courts have imposed certain expanded due process requirements, as reflected in the procedures set forth in the HUD handbook, on such an owner before it can terminate the lease of a Section 8 tenant. These issues were recently explored by Bronx Civil Court Judge Timmie Erin Elsner in her decision in West Farms Estates Co. v. Aquino,1 which presented a careful analysis of the law in this area and offered a clear lesson for owners of this type of housing.
