As of December 30th, 2023, Source of Income will now be a protected class in Tempe, Arizona joining the City of Phoenix and the City of Tucson. This means that a Tempe property owner cannot have blanket prohibitions against residents based solely upon where their funds for rent come from, such as Section 8 or other assistance programs.
What is considered SOI? Housing vouchers, rental subsidy (including but not limited to Section 8, HUD, Home Inc., Rapid Rehousing, etc.), Supplemental Security Income, Veteran’s benefits, rental assistance, salary, or other legal sources of income. You must accept payment of rent from such sources, even if it requires you to participate in a program such as Section 8.
Can a landlord opt-out of these programs or rental assistance? NO. As SOI is now a protected class, a landlord cannot opt out of such programs and must accept the applicant if they otherwise qualify even if a landlord has not previously participated in a voucher program.
What qualifications must a person with a voucher meet? All applicants must meet all rental qualifications, including credit and criminal background, except any requirement relating to income that would automatically bar them without the voucher.
How do we qualify required income of 3x rent? When qualifying someone using a voucher or other subsidy, we require they make 3x the monthly rent for their portion of rent (not the full rent which includes the subsidy).
For example, If the rent is $2,000 but the subsidy covers $1,000 per month, then the tenant’s portion is only $1,000 and they would only need to show 3x the $1000 per month.
About Rentals America
Rentals America provides full-service property management for residential rental properties. Our team is completely dedicated to property management, and we’re here to help landlords navigate the rental market.
