NYC housing officials blame late Section 8 rent payments on federal disarray
By
David Brand
Published Feb 3, 2025
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New York City officials say the fallout from a proposed federal funding freeze caused them to delay rent payments on Monday to landlords who lease apartments to tens of thousands of tenants with Section 8 housing assistance.
The New York City Housing Authority administers the federal Section 8 program for roughly 100,000 households in the five boroughs, with the agency receiving nearly $2 billion a year from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and distributing it to private landlords at the beginning of each month.
Landlords expected to see the monthly rent checks deposited in their bank accounts on Monday morning, but many of the deposits were missing, according to interviews.
“I can’t cover the mortgage without those payments,” said Alina Suriel, who leases units to Section 8 recipients at two homes she owns in the Bronx. “It’s so stressful.”
Jay Martin, senior vice president at the landlord trade group New York Apartment Association, said at least a dozen property owners with hundreds of apartments contacted him on Monday because they were concerned and confused about the missing payments.
Christiam Velez, a real estate agent who connects landlords with tenants who use rental assistance, said seven landlords had called her to ask about their missing Section 8 payments by 10 a.m. Monday.
“My phone is like a hotline right now,” she told Gothamist. “All my small landlords are absolutely freaking out.”
In response to questions from Gothamist, NYCHA spokesperson Michael Horgan blamed the delay on confusion resulting from a Trump administration directive last week ordering federal agencies to pause payments. The White House rescinded the order shortly after it was issued, and after sparking widespread confusion among dozens of government agencies and those who receive federal payments.
"Due to recently issued federal guidance and related implications for the expenditure of federal funds, NYCHA was not able to process payments in accordance with its normal operating procedures,” Horgan said in an emailed statement. “As of this morning, NYCHA has received funding for the Section 8 program and has immediately begun processing. Property owners will receive the electronic funds transfer within one business day.”
Horgan said the agency was still awaiting guidance about whether it would receive the money on Friday.
In response to the confusion created by the order, the White House issued a fact sheet indicating it would not have applied to rental assistance. But the Section 8 program was included on internal guidance issued to federal agencies which described federal initiatives subject to review under the order, the New York Times reported.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Housing experts and landlords said the delayed payments and ongoing confusion threaten to undermine rental assistance voucher programs by sowing seeds of doubt among landlords who worry the funding could be cut, or that their payments won’t arrive on time.
“Landlords’ confidence in the programs is what makes them successful,” said Rachel Fee, executive director of the nonprofit New York Housing Conference. “Payment delays and funding uncertainty can send shockwaves through the affordable housing community, affecting building owners and tenants.”
Velez, the real estate agent, said this was already the case, adding that concern began building last week after property owners questioned whether the Trump administration's funding-freeze order could affect their bottom lines. She said one landlord told her he would prefer to rent his apartment to tenants who do not use a housing voucher, even though he would earn about $800 less a month.
Velez said she rents five apartments to tenants with Section 8 vouchers in properties she owns, and counts on the money to pay her mortgage.
“If we make [loan] payments late, we get penalized,” said Velez. “Can we penalize the government for making late payments?”
Suriel, who owns a pair of two-family homes in the Bronx, said Section 8 vouchers cover nearly 90% of the rent from tenants in two apartments.
She said she understands the importance of the rental assistance program because her family used vouchers to help pay the rent when she was growing up.
Suriel said she wished NYCHA had informed landlords about any delays, especially amid the confusion from the federal level.
“There could have been a notice,” she said. “Nobody knew what was happening and we don’t know if it could happen again.”
“One day is significant,” said Martin from the New York Apartment Association. “We really need to make sure the government and NYCHA make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
This story has been edited to update details on Section 8 payments for Alina Suriel's properties.