Request for Tenancy Approval

The Request for Tenancy Approval (RFTA) is a HUD form that must be completed by the landlord for the unit you wish to lease. The RFTA asks specific questions about the unit such as the number of bedrooms in the unit, the unit address, the amount of the contract rent, the year the unit was built, the type of utilities and who will be responsible for paying the utility bill.

Once an RFTA has been submitted, a housing representative will review the paperwork, calculate the utility allowance schedule, and calculate 30% of your monthly adjusted income to determine if your share of the gross rent remains within the Maximum Initial Rent Burden (40% of monthly adjusted income). If your share exceeds the maximum initial rent burden, the RFTA will be denied and you’ll be given the opportunity to find another unit.

After the RFTA has been approved, your paperwork will be forwarded to our housing inspector. Our inspector will schedule an appointment to perform the initial inspection of the unit to ensure the unit meets Housing Quality Standards (HQS). If the unit fails to meet minimum HQS, the inspector will notify you and the owner of the required repairs and will allow time for the repairs to be made.

In addition to the unit meeting HQS, our inspector must certify that the rent charged for the unit is reasonable. When determining reasonable rent we must take into consideration the unit age, size, type, and location.

Once the unit meets Housing Quality Standards (HQS), and our inspector has determined the rent is reasonable, we’ll be ready to schedule an appointment for execution of the leasing documents and Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) contract.