Tools and Strategies for Improving Community Relations in the Housing Choice Voucher Program

In most localities, the HCVP has a decades-long history of successful program
implementation. Nationwide, more than 1.4 million households receive HCVP
tenant-based assistance—most with little notice or fanfare in the surrounding
community. With housing choice at the core of its mission, the program provides
the opportunity to integrate low-income households into the fabric of the
community, rather than concentrating and isolating them in specific projects.
The program has succeeded in many important respects. Studies indicate that
HCVP recipients live in better quality housing than similar unassisted families.
They also are less likely than public housing residents to live in high-poverty
neighborhoods. While other forms of subsidized housing—particularly project based subsidies—have languished, the HCVP tenant-based program has
continued to grow, serving an ever-increasing number of households in need.