Thank you for allowing us to assist you in your search for income based housing in your State. On this page you will find our comprehensive list of government, state and local programs made available for low income families and individuals. To help you even further we have provided a list of as many rental homes and apartments in areas where we can find listing. Search the alphabetical list below for a list from your city.

In the Process of Being Updated Sorry for the Inconvenience

The New Jersey Housing Resources Center (http://www.njhousing.gov/njhrc/find_housing.html) is a partnership between the state government of New Jersey (Department of Community Affairs), the Department of Human Services-Disability Services and the Housing and Mortgage Financing Agency.  The site exists as a clearing house for consumers looking for affordable housing as well as providers of affordable housing.  The site is free, and its use is on an anonymous basis. New listings of available properties are updated continuously.

One of the features of the site is an online tool that helps all users to find affordable housing by locating and listing vacancies; that helps people with disabilities find homes that are affordable and accessible; and which provides links and housing information. The State of New Jersey also provides a publication:  A Guide to Affordable Housing in New Jersey through its Department of Community Affairs. (http://www.state.nj.us/dca/divisions/codes/publications/guide.html)

New Jersey boasts over 100 housing authorities that provide and manage federal public housing (also known as Section 8 housing) within the state.

Federal guidelines restrict public housing to those who earn less than 80 percent of the median family income in a given geographic location. Federal regulations require that a percentage of public housing be kept reserved for very low-income households, i.e. those who earn 50 percent or less of median family income and for extremely low income households which earn 30 percent or less of that same measure.  Public housing requires that households apply and provide proof of income, of good character including recommendations from current and past landlords.  Once approved for the program, applicants must spend time on a waiting list for vacancies.  Demand often outstrips availability.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) maintains a website (http://www.hud.gov/local/index.cfm?state=nj&topic=renting) which offers a tool for locating affordable housing in the State of New Jersey as well as providing information and guidance in qualifying for public housing.

New Jersey has several private, not for profit agencies which aid households in finding and qualifying for affordable housing.  One of these is the Affordable Housing Alliance of Monmouth County, which was formed in 1991 with a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.  The AHA assists with:

• Housing Development
• Housing Counseling and
• Income Certification
• Community Outreach
• Administrative Agency
• Property Management

The AHA also aids existing households with meeting utility bills by helping with the application process and serving as an intake agency for state programs such as NJShares (aids moderate income households with once per year hardship assistance) and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) which provides one time and monthly assistance to very low income households.  The Alliance also administers a new program called “Temporary Relief for Utility Expense” (TRUE), a onetime relief for utility bills for households experiencing a financial crisis.

Another private, non-profit housing assistance agency in New Jersey is MEND.  MEND develops, builds, owns and manages affordable rental properties in Burlington County New Jersey.    The organization was founded in 1969 by Moorestown area churches, nine in number and has grown into one of the best organizations in the state in providing affordable housing.  MEND is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors and staffed by affordable housing professionals. The organization is monitored by the State of New Jersey’s Community Affairs Department.

New Jersey has also recently passed a bill which will address the number of affordable housing units in the state by tapping into the vast number of foreclosed properties created in the state by the recent economic collapse. The new law: The New Jersey Residential Foreclosure Transformation Act, S1566/A2168 would create a new state agency that would buy foreclosed houses and turn some of them into affordable housing.  This is seen as being not only a boon to available affordable units, but also a solution to a growing number of boarded up houses that exist in neighborhoods statewide, which drive down property values of the remaining homes, thereby improving neighborhoods and helping boost the economy. The new agency would have at its disposal more than $500 million from the State Affordable Housing Trust Fund; federal dollars and funds from the recent foreclosure settlement.  Passage of the bill should help stabilize the housing market within the state and add substantially to the number of available units at a time when waiting lists for public housing can be years long.