Bay Area Section 8 tenants threatened by Trump administration with homelessness

Bay Area Section 8 tenants threatened by Trump administration with homelessness

By Lynda Carson - April 18, 2025

Oakland, CA - Bay Area Section 8 tenants are threatened by the convicted felon Donald J. Trump administration with homelessness. According to HUD records on August 28, 2024, the Oakland Housing Authority (OHA) administered approximately 1,450 public housing units, 14,000 Housing Choice Voucher units, and 1,080 units of local, non-traditional housing. http://web.archive.org/web/20250323082447/https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/ph/mtw/oakland .

Reportedly the 'White House Eyes Overhaul Of Federal Housing Aid To The Poor.'

This may result in tens of thousands Section 8 tenants in the Bay Area becoming homeless, and unhoused, resulting in many homeless deaths on the cold hearted streets of Oakland, Alameda County, and the Bay Area.

Reportedly, “More than 87,000 Section 8-subsidized units were funded by Bay Area housing agencies in 2024, including about 16,000 from the San Francisco Housing Authority, according to data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD.”

White House Eyes Overhaul Of Federal Housing Aid To The Poor

Reportedly, according to an article yesterday in the New York Times (NYT) called ‘White House eyes overhaul of federal housing aid to the poor,’ a number of sources have revealed to the NYT that the Trump administration is considering sharply curtailing vouchers in the budget for the 2026 fiscal year, from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

According to the NYT, “The Trump administration is considering deep cuts to federal housing programs, including a sweeping overhaul of aid to low-income families in a reconfiguration that could jeopardize millions’ of Americans continued access to rental assistance funds.”

Additionally, the New York Times (NYT) reports that existing federal aid through HUD and Public Housing Authorities would be dismantled and replaced with more limited state-run grants.

Meanwhile, the new HUD Secretary Scott Turner, a boot licking Trump loyalist who may hate the poor https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2024/12/24/18871680.php , remains silent about the Trump administration considering to make deep cuts to HUDs federal housing assistance programs for the poor, elderly, and those with disabilities, and was not quoted in the Times article. HUD subsidized housing tenants can not depend on HUD Secretary Turner to stand up and defend them from the convicted felon President Donald J. Trump in their time of need.

Additionally, Turner has not replied to Senate members who have sent him letters demanding to know more about DOGE HUD layoffs, and HUD offices being shut down all across the nation. Apparently, the HUD Secretary has no respect for the Senate members who have been questioning his activities in regards as to what has been happening at HUD since he became the HUD Secretary recently.

Additionally, the Times article mentioned above failed to mention that this would be a complete disaster for MTW Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) all across the nation because they are allowed to mix the federal funding from HUD with their Public Housing Program and the Housing Choice Voucher Program a.k.a. Section 8 housing voucher program, that PHAs administer. None MTW PHAs are not allowed to mix their federal funding from HUD, meaning that they can not mix Section 8 funding with the public housing program, and the public housing funding can not be mixed with the Section 8 voucher program.

The link below has links to MTW Public Housing Authorities (MTW PHAs) all across the nation…

http://web.archive.org/web/20250307185047/https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/ph/mtw/mtwagencies

Quote from Eric Oberdorfer of NAHRO.

Only one in four families eligible for vouchers are able to obtain them because of funding constraints. A federal cut would put public-housing agencies in a position in which “they would need to make difficult decisions” and in some cases stop providing benefits, said Eric Oberdorfer, the director of policy and legislative affairs at NAHRO, https://www.linkedin.com/posts/nahro_white-house-eyes-overhaul-of-federal-housing-activity-7318691043065958400-eWZe .

“If there were a cut to the voucher program, essentially, you would see a decrease to the number of families that are served by the program,” Eric Oberdorfer, policy director at the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials, told the Times.

According to Christopher Pitt MBA
Sharecropper to Community Developer providing Affordable Housing with Tokenized Real Estate l CEO at Pursuit To Own l I TEDx Speaker | Affordable Housing Expert | ULI Baltimore Affordable Housing Co-Chair I

“I am working in this space everyday. This would lead to a mass exit of landlords where participation has already declined over years. It would not be devastating for one family but generationals, National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) !”

According to Colin Parent
CEO and General Counsel for housing abundance and mobility think-tank Circulate San Diego. Former elected official and public agency Director.

In San Diego, about half of all Housing Choice Vouchers are used to house the elderly and the disabled. Cutting these resources would be incredibly cruel. https://lnkd.in/ejgbZ-wZ
According to Dr. Desiree Del-Zio Walker, Ed.D
Chief Executive Officer and Principal Consultant - D.E.&C Consulting Firm

As it pertains to social service and community care, this administration appears to be eternally cruel.

Additionally, currently, about 2.3 million low-income households rely on federal vouchers, administered through local housing authorities, to help pay rent. While the program is part of a $54 billion rental assistance framework, demand consistently exceeds funding, leaving long waitlists as rents continue to rise nationwide, according to the Times article.

Click on the link below for some links to Google Headlines to find more details about threats to HUD and its subsidized housing programs…

https://news.google.com/search?q=HUD%20Trump%20budget%20cuts%20to%20housing&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US%3Aen

Though the federal budgets annually are up to the discretion of Congress, if the convicted felon President Donald J. Trump gets his way, major cuts to HUD subsidized housing programs would be a disaster for local Bay Area Section 8 voucher tenants, millions of HUD subsidized Section 8 housing tenants all across the nation, including millions of public housing tenants locally, and all across the nation. The last time Trump was in office, he tried numerous times to pressure Congress to make major cuts to HUD and its subsidized housing programs.

Some Links To Some Public Housing Authorities In The Bay Area According To HUD:

http://web.archive.org/web/20250319092801/https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/ph/mtw/alameda

HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF ALAMEDA

General Information

Housing Authority of the City of Alameda (AHA) currently administers approximately 1,900 Housing Choice Voucher units.

Last updated October 23, 2024

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http://web.archive.org/web/20250319132434/https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/ph/mtw/livermore

LIVERMORE HOUSING AUTHORITY

General Information

Livermore Housing Authority (LHA) currently administers 922 Housing Choice Voucher units.

Last updated August 16, 2024

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http://web.archive.org/web/20250319094416/https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/ph/mtw/sanmateo

HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

General Information

The Housing Authority of the County of San Mateo (HACSM) is a catalyst for increasing access to affordable housing and supporting related community development so that housing permanently exists for people of all income levels and generations in San Mateo County. HACSM uses their four core values of being innovative, trustworthy, client-focused and impactful to be a national model for housing departments.

Currently HACSM manages approximately 5,150 Housing Choice Voucher units and 80 units of local, non-traditional housing made possible by their MTW program.

Last updated August 28, 2024

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http://web.archive.org/web/20250319092844/https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/ph/mtw/santacruz

HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ

General Information

Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz (HASC) currently administers approximately 0 public housing units and 5,500 Housing Choice Voucher units.

Last updated August 28, 2024

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http://web.archive.org/web/20250315054816/https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/ph/mtw/sclarasjose

Santa Clara County Housing Authority (SCCHA) and the Housing Authority of the City of San José (HACSJ)

General Information

The Santa Clara County Housing Authority (SCCHA) and the Housing Authority of the City of San José (HACSJ) entered into a cooperative agreement in 1976 where SCCHA administers and manages the City's Housing Choice Voucher and public housing programs. The combined agencies operate under the business name of the Santa Clara County Housing Authority.

SCCHA administers approximately 19,000 Housing Choice Vouchers and 740 units of local, non-traditional housing between the two agencies. They also own or control approximately 2,500 affordable housing apartments throughout Santa Clara County.

Last updated November 27, 2024

April 14, 2025, MEMO From The NLIHC:

According to the National Low-Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) in an April 14, 2025, memo to members, in part it states, “The White House is expected to release its fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget request mid-May, with an outline – known as a “skinny budget” – expected later in April. During his first term, President Trump repeatedly called for massive spending cuts to HUD programs, including deep cuts to the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program that, if enacted, would have taken housing assistance away from 200,000 households who rely on their HCV to keep a roof over their heads. The previous Trump Administration also pushed Congress to enact policies that would increase barriers to accessing housing assistance, including work requirements, time limits, and minimum rent increases on HUD-assisted households. However, thanks to advocates and congressional champions who worked tirelessly to protect HCVs and other vital HUD programs, these proposed cuts and policy changes were never enacted. NLIHC is expecting these threats to be raised again as FY26 negotiations take shape.”

A Catastrophe For Millions Of Low-Income Families:

That’s right. This would be a major catastrophe for the millions of low-income families, seniors, and persons with disabilities who would suddenly face housing instability as a result of losing their HUD subsidized housing, if Trump gets his way.

The Trump administrations proposed budget cuts and voucher cuts to the Housing Choice Voucher Program a.k.a. Section 8 voucher program, public housing, and other HUD subsidized housing programs reflects the convicted felon Trumps hatred of the poor, and his scheme to continue giving massive tax breaks for himself, and his billionaire friends who have taken control of the White House, and the federal government, while attacking the poor, and middle class.

This means that all of HUDs federal rental assistance programs may be at risk, including Project-Based (vouchers that stay with unit) and Tenant-Based Rental Assistance Programs (Section 8 housing vouchers for tenants), the Public Housing Operating and Capital Funds and other similar federal rental assistance programs could be devastated including HOME, CDBG, Continuum of Care, MTW Demonstration, Choice Neighborhoods, Jobs Plus, Family Self-Sufficiency, Lead Hazard Reduction grants, Project-Based Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD Program), and other HUD programs,” if there are massive cuts in federal funding affecting HUD, or if HUDs subsidized housing programs are eliminated.

Reportedly, “Maintaining these programs is crucial to ensuring the livelihood of 2.3 million families in the Housing Choice Voucher program, 800,000 families in the Public Housing program, 1.3 million families in Project based Rental Assistance, and thousands of others in other rental assistance programs. Each of these programs provide a myriad of benefits for families including providing a home. For example, the Housing Choice Voucher program can, in certain instances, provide improvements to the physical and mental health of adults and can increase lifetime earnings for children. The Housing Choice Voucher program celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2024 and during its entire existence housing agencies in the voucher program have been known for consistent, reliable payments to landlords. The Department should not begin missing payments now, or in the future. The Federal government, through HUD, cannot default on its obligations to housing agencies, landlords, and millions of Americans.”

Indeed, if there are disasterous cuts to, or the elimination of HUD’s subsidized housing programs affecting the large Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) across the nation, reportedly “There are 700,000 private property owners that would not receive rent payments, which could lead to defaults on mortgage loans and deterioration of the properties. In addition, private developers could not only default on their loans and commitments to private equity investors, but also have to abandon additional development projects because of funding uncertainty. Further, countless construction and other private industry jobs, as well as staff at the 3,200 public housing authorities across the country, could be at risk if HUDs federal housing assistance programs are subject to a pause in federal spending, or massive budget cuts in the near future.”

The above figures only are for the nations large PHAs, and do not include the figures that may be affecting all of the smaller PHAs spread across the nation belonging to PHADA. According to PHADA https://www.phada.org/Member-Center/About-PHADA , PHADA’s 1,900 member housing agencies represent over 1.9 million low-income housing units throughout the United States. Our members manage small, medium, large, rural, and urban housing authorities that run programs including public housing, housing choice vouchers, Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD), and a variety of other innovative public-private partnerships.

PHA contact information may be found here https://www.hud.gov/contactus/public-housing-contacts .

Lynda Carson may be reached at Newzland2 [at] gmail.com

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