Lancaster is hub for affordable housing | The Lancaster News

Williams made the announcement when she presented the organization’s annual report to Lancaster City Council at its June 13 meeting.

Williams also noted that when she began leading the local  organization in 2021, it was considered “substandard” by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. It is now rated “standard” and “back in HUD’s good graces,” as it works toward becoming a “high performance” agency, she reported.

The Lancaster Housing Authority is modernizing all 140 public housing units it operates. It has successfully completed 87 renovations, with 53 to go.

“If you guys ever get the chance to come look at the units, they look so different,” Williams said. “They look like a house or an apartment that you (might) go to in any neighborhood.”

As of June 5, there were 133 occupied units and seven vacant units in the city’s public housing system. The average housing assistance payment (HAP) for rent is $500 a month, in a study conducted on three sections of Caroline Courts. The average total rent after HAP is $373 a month for one bedroom, $505 for two bedrooms, $622 for three bedrooms and $691 for four bedrooms.

The Housing Authority of Lancaster currently has 252 housing choice vouchers (HCV) available for Section 8 housing, and is actively using 240 of those.

Williams said the Housing Authority still needs landlords with homes to rent in Lancaster County who are willing to participate in the Section 8 housing program…