HUD Considering Cash Housing Assistance Pilot

Cash housing assistance in lieu of bureaucracy-laden vouchers could make affordable housing more accessible to low-income households.

1 minute read

September 13, 2023, 6:00 AM PDT

By Diana Ionescu @aworkoffiction


Modernist concrete facade of Department of Housing and Urban Development headquarters building in Washington, D.C.

Andriy Blokhin / Adobe Stock

The federal government is finally asking a question housing activists have been posing for decades: “What if, instead of traditional housing vouchers laden with convoluted red tape that landlords notoriously hate, low-income tenants could pay their rent with cash?” Writing in Vox, Rachel M. Cohen describes a potential new program taking shape at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

As Cohen points out, this isn’t a new concept. “In the early 1970s, Congress successfully piloted a program to 14,000 families across 12 cities.” Now, HUD researchers want to pilot a new program to study how cash assistance might impact households’ ability to access housing.

Under current conditions, of the 25 percent of eligible households that receive federal Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers, only 60 percent are able to find housing using the voucher—in part due to source-of-income discrimination on the part of landlords.

The article outlines some of the challenges the program will have to overcome, including the logistics of distributing cash aid (which HUD isn’t allowed to do). “But if HUD isn’t allowed to distribute its vouchers as cash, foundations could step in, and then HUD could study how that goes.”

Cohen adds, “According to a HUD official involved, the federal demonstration could conceivably get off the ground in the next six to nine months, depending on how fast governments find charitable partners.”

Tuesday, September 12, 2023 in Vox

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly

Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

White and purple sign for Slow Street in San Francisco, California with people crossing crosswalk.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths

Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

July 1, 2025 - KQED

"Altadena - Not For Sale" yard sign in front of burned down house after Eaton Fire in Altadena, California in January 2025.

Half of Post-Fire Altadena Home Sales Were to Corporations

Large investors are quietly buying up dozens of properties in Altadena, California, where a devastating wildfire destroyed more than 6,000 homes in January.

July 7 - Dwell

Dense multistory residential buildings in hilly San Francisco, California.

Opinion: What San Francisco’s Proposed ‘Family Zoning’ Could Really Mean

Mayor Lurie is using ‘family zoning’ to encourage denser development and upzoning — but could the concept actually foster community and more human-scale public spaces?

July 7 - The San Francisco Standard

Blue self-driving Ford Transit van shuttle in Jacksonville, Florida.

Jacksonville Launches First Autonomous Transit Shuttle in US

A fleet of 14 fully autonomous vehicles will serve a 3.5-mile downtown Jacksonville route with 12 stops.

July 7 - Smart Cities Dive

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Associate/Senior Planner

Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development

Senior Planner

Heyer Gruel & Associates PA