LIHTC, Section 8, public housing and market rate: how they compare

The short answer

These labels describe different programs, and each one has its own application. A tax credit apartment caps the rent on a unit. A voucher helps you pay rent and moves with you. Other help is attached to one unit and stays there. Public housing is run by a housing agency. Market rate has no program rules at all.

Three questions sort out almost any listing. Who takes the application? How is the rent set? Does the help stay with the unit or go with you? We’ll help you ask them. We can’t decide whether your household is eligible, and only the property or agency can confirm a unit is open.

Income restricted and LIHTC: ask the property

With tax credit housing, you usually apply to the property for a restricted unit. The program sets a household income limit, often 50% or 60% of the area median, from HUD’s Multifamily Tax Subsidy Project limits. The rent cap is set by bedroom count from that income limit. It isn’t figured from your own income, so the rent doesn’t go up and down with your pay. TDHCA’s income and rent limit resources explain the Texas details.

An income limit isn’t the same as help paying your rent. A tax credit rent can be restricted and still be more than some low income households can pay. Ask management for:

• The unit’s designation and which program restricts it.
• The income limit that applies to your household size.
• The actual rent and any required charges.
• How they check your income.
• The written screening criteria.

TDHCA’s Housing Tax Credit FAQs cover how the program works. For the rent math, read how LIHTC rent and AMI limits work.

Housing Choice Vouchers: ask the agency, then find a rental it can approve

A housing agency decides who’s eligible and issues the voucher. Once you have one, you search for a unit under its rules, and both the owner and the agency still have to approve the tenancy. HUD’s tenant guidance walks through the steps.

Your share of the rent comes from the agency’s calculation. HUD’s voucher guidebook on rent starts with 30% of your monthly adjusted income, compared against a few other amounts. Say you pick a unit that costs more than the agency’s payment standard. HUD’s payment standard guidebook says your share can’t go over 40% of adjusted income when you first lease up. A payment standard isn’t the highest rent an owner may advertise. More detail is in our voucher guide.

When the help comes with the unit: PBV and PBRA

Some “Section 8” apartments have the help attached to the unit, not to a voucher you carry. Project-Based Vouchers run through a housing agency as part of the voucher program. Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) is a separate HUD program, as HUD’s PBV and PBRA fact sheet explains. In Project-Based Section 8 housing, your share of the rent is based on your household income.

If you move out, the help usually stays with the apartment. Ask the provider whether you could move with help later, and when. Ask whose list you’re joining, too, since some lists are kept for one property. For example, a fall 2026 FWHS notice opened PBV lists at three named Fort Worth properties for just five days. See our guide to PBV and PBRA for more.

Public housing: follow the agency’s process

A housing agency owns or runs public housing. Apply through the agency’s official route and keep your application up to date as you wait to be selected and reviewed. HUD’s public housing page explains how the agency route works and how rent is figured. Your rent is the highest of a short list of amounts, starting with 30% of monthly adjusted income, and the agency sets a minimum rent.

Asking us or any other locator for help isn’t applying for public housing. If an office says you need a referral, ask where that referral comes from and which application leads to it. For the steps, read how to apply to a Texas public housing waiting list.

What ad labels really tell you

Turn each label into a question about the real rent and the real application.

• “Income restricted”: ask which program restricts the unit, which income limit applies and how management checks your income. The label alone doesn’t mean the rent follows your income.
• “Section 8 accepted”: ask if the owner will take a voucher you’ve been issued, or if the unit itself comes with help attached. Those lead to different applications. Check what the agency requires for that rental.
• “Market rate” or a move-in special: ask for the regular rent once the special ends, plus required charges and renewal terms. A low promo price doesn’t mean the unit has a lasting rent limit. Compare the total over the whole lease, not just the first month.

Why one building can mix programs

A property can have more than one source of funding. Old records may list it under a past program or past management. So the building’s name isn’t the program. Ask about the unit being offered now. A public record is a lead to follow up on, not proof of every apartment’s current legal status.

• Find out who decides. For a private restricted unit, ask the manager who handles compliance. For an agency program, find out the list and the agency contact.
• Find out what the quote assumes. Ask whether the advertised rent assumes assistance. If it does, ask whether the help comes with the unit or has to come from a voucher you hold. The price quoted to a household with help may not be the rent you’d pay without it.
• Keep the answer with the application. Write down the program name, unit, contact and date. If a public record and management’s answer don’t match, ask them to clear it up rather than quietly picking the better number.

Where to apply first

Start with your timing and your budget.

• If your move deadline is close, first find apartments you can apply to now, at a price you can keep paying. Look into longer term assistance programs alongside that search.
• Don’t count on a voucher you haven’t been issued, or a waiting list application that hasn’t been picked. Neither one belongs in today’s rent budget.
• If you can’t afford the rent without help, start with the programs run by housing agencies. Ask each one which list and process apply to you.
• Before you pay a tax credit application fee, check the restricted rent against your own budget.

You can apply to an agency list and a private property at the same time. Keep two logs: one for agency or assisted property lists and one for private leasing leads. For each, write down the program, the next step and the cost. When one building has both assisted and unassisted restricted units, keep separate records and confirmations for each.

Before you pay any fee

You should know which unit or list you’re applying for, how screening works, what each charge means and where documents go. If any of that is unclear, ask before you pay. Write up every offer the same way:

• The actual unit and when it’ll be ready.
• The program and how to apply.
• Rent before and after any special.
• Utilities and required charges.
• Cash needed to move in, and what’s refundable.
• Screening and household rules.

Keep your own budget apart from the eligibility math. The AMI eligibility estimator gives a first look at tax credit income limits. Work through the eligibility and screening checks, and use official assistance resources if you need help soon.

Local application steps by city: Austin · San Antonio · Houston · Dallas · Fort Worth.