Section 8 Payments Delayed For December After Government Shutdown

Leo Migdal

-Dec 7, 2025, 5:28 PM

section 8 payments delayed for december after government shutdown

Thousands of landlords who participate in the federal Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program will not receive their December payments on time due to delayed funding from HUD, as reported by Bisnow. The issue is tied to a recent 43-day government shutdown — the longest in U.S. history — which ended in November. Public housing authorities in cities like New York, Boston, and Boca Raton are among those notifying landlords of the delay, with many warning that full payments may not be made until mid-December or later. Stay ahead of trends in commercial real estate with CRE Daily – the free newsletter delivering everything you need to start your day in just 5-minutes New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), the nation’s largest housing agency, said it’s exploring interim solutions but has not yet received its December funding.

Boston Housing Authority (BHA) expected a $40M disbursement from HUD on Dec. 1 but has received nothing. It’s now using $10M in reserves to make partial payments — about 25% of the total owed. The federal government shutdown has been over for weeks, but the ramifications are hitting Section 8 landlords hard. The government failed to deliver funds designated for Section 8 housing vouchers at the start of the month, Bisnow reported. The delay leaves more than 500 public housing authorities in the lurch and may create a shortfall between $700 million and $800 million for operators.

Public housing agency association groups learned of the funding shortfall on Monday. Housing authorities in New York City, Georgia, Boston and Boca Raton are among those affected. “Following notice from HUD that payments to Section 8 landlords would be delayed this month, NYCHA is assessing interim options and will distribute funding as soon as it becomes available from HUD,” NYCHA said... “HUD is working to make these awards to PHAs to ensure no disruption in program services,” a spokesperson for the Department of Housing and Urban Development said in a statement. The agency also took the federal government’s typical line of blaming Democrats for the historic 43-day shutdown. Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2025.

Donate today Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations The federal shutdown may be over, but it is still wreaking havoc on low-income New Yorkers. The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development told the New York City Housing Authority and others on Tuesday that funding for the Section 8 rental assistance program will be delayed this month in... The Section 8 program provides federal dollars to landlords who lease units to low-income tenants in order to subsidize the rent. Typically, someone in the Section 8 program is required to pay about 30 percent of their income toward housing and the government picks up the rest.

Thousands of affordable housing operators won’t be getting paid by the government on time this month. Some funds earmarked for Section 8 vouchers haven’t been distributed by the federal government to hundreds of local housing authorities, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development has notified the agencies that the... More than 500 public housing authorities have a shortfall for December payments that total between $700M and $800M, an industry representative familiar with the details of the program told Bisnow. A HUD spokesperson said the missed payments were caused by complications associated with the government shutdown, which was the longest in U.S. history at 43 days and ended in the middle of November. “Democrats shut the government down for more than 40 days.

As HUD warned from the beginning, this careless decision resulted in real-world consequences for vulnerable Americans. HUD is working to make these awards to PHAs to ensure no disruption in program services,” the spokesperson said in a statement to Bisnow. Officials from the New York Apartment Association (NYAA) said they were informed by NYCHA officials earlier this month that Section 8 voucher payments would be delayed due to complications associated with the recent federal... NYAA officials said they were monitoring the situation closely and would provide additional information to members as it became available. NYCHA provided an update on the situation on Saturday, Dec. 6.

An initial statement from NYCHA on Monday, Dec. 1, read, “The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) informed the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) and other public housing authorities across the nation that funding for distribution to Section 8... It continued, “Following notice from HUD that payments to Section 8 landlords would be delayed this month, NYCHA is assessing interim options and will distribute funding as soon as it becomes available from HUD. NYCHA’s Section 8 payments to landlords are contingent on federal funding, with the Authority serving as a pass-through for Housing Assistance Payments (HAP). It is NYCHA’s standard procedure to pay its Section 8 landlords as soon as is reasonably practicable following its receipt of funding from HUD.” The statement concluded, “NYCHA extends its sincere apologies for any inconvenience incurred as a result of the delayed distribution of Section 8 funds.

We will continue to work with HUD and update tenants and landlords accordingly in the weeks to come.” Meanwhile, NYAA alleges NYCHA officials said they expected to receive the rest of the federally approved funding during the week commencing Dec. 8, at which point they allege NYCHA would transfer the remaining payments owed to property owners. Norwood News contacted NYCHA to check on this point. We did not receive an immediate response. However, on Dec.

6, NYCHA confirmed it now has the full funds needed to make landlord payments for the month of December. The recent federal shutdown continues to impact New York City, as local officials prepare for delays in rental assistance payments for low-income residents. The Section 8 program is expected to face delays in fund disbursement, with the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) receiving notice of this from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Tenants typically contribute around 30 percent of their income toward housing, with the government covering the remainder through Section 8. According to an official NYCHA statement, reported by Gothamist, “Following notice from HUD that payments to Section 8 landlords would be delayed this month, NYCHA is assessing interim options and will distribute funding as... The New York Apartment Association (NYAA) referenced NYCHA’s update, noting that it is “standard procedure to pay its Section 8 landlords as soon as is reasonably practicable following its receipt of funding from HUD.”...

Recognizing the impact on tenants and landlords, NYCHA issued an apology for the delay. In a statement to Gothamist, the agency said, “NYCHA extends its sincere apologies for any inconvenience incurred as a result of the delayed distribution of Section 8 funds” and confirmed that it will “continue... As the effects of the federal shutdown continue to affect social service funding, NYAA is closely monitoring the situation to keep its members informed. Norwood News has also contacted HUD for additional information and will share updates once they are received. The federal government shutdown continues into its second week, and people using housing assistance programs are feeling the ripple effects. For renters relying on Section 8 vouchers and landlords who depend on steady housing payments, the disruptions aren’t just annoying — they could threaten someone’s home.

In this article, we’ll walk through what’s changed recently, how Section 8 and HUD operations are being affected, and what renters and landlords can do now to reduce harm. Although many programs are “continuing” in name, parts of the system that require new approvals or oversight are in limbo. Here’s a look at what specifically is happening: Requests for waivers, exceptions, or changes in payments often require HUD sign-off. Those are currently stuck until HUD staff return. Boston landlords who rent to tenants through the federal Section 8 voucher program will only get 25% of their December payments from the Boston Housing Authority for the time being as the country continues...

A Tuesday letter from Kathlin McGonagle, chief of leased housing and admissions at the BHA, said that housing authorities across the country have not yet received approval of “shortfall funding,” which the BHA relies... “As a result of these federal approval and processing delays at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, due in part to the federal government shutdown, our ability to release payments to our Section 8/Housing Choice Voucher Program landlords on the regular schedule has been negatively... Section 8 is a federal program that helps with rental payments for low-income households, seniors and those with disabilities. The letter also said that the BHA anticipates that full payments may not be given out until around the middle of the month. In the meantime, they’re giving out a quarter of the monthly payment to those who receive direct deposits.

That percentage reflects the portion of funds the BHA currently has.

Section 8 Payments Delayed For December After Government Shutdown

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