The Vermont State Housing Authority (VSHA) will close its waiting list for Section 8 housing vouchers by the end of next month. The move, only the second time VSHA has closed its list, comes in the wake of many local housing authorities closing their lists due to overwhelming demand, low turnover and a lack of funding.

VSHA's list exceeds 3,000 and could number 4,000 by the time it closes.

It's not uncommon for applicants to wait years before receiving a voucher.

“We never used to close our list. This is the second time we closed it, but the demand is just so high and people call and ask, ‘where am I on the list’ and you don’t have any good news to give them,” VSHA Executive Director Richard Williams told the Rutland Herald.

This weekend, the Rutland Herald published a story about VHFA's Housing Acquisition & Rehabilitation Program (HARP).

Featuring Thad and Sarah Launderville, one of HARP's first success stories, the article quotes VHFA's Sarah Carpenter, NeighborWorks of Western Vermont's Tia Poalino and Greg Over.

Read the story online.

We've made some changes to the Directory of Affordable Rental Housing (DoARH) that we hope will make the site even easier to use.

Your search results now appear in a compact, streamlined table for easy review. Click on any property name to see the full details for that property.

We've opened the doors for registrations for the 2010 Vermont Statewide Housing Conference.

Register online now and earn the early bird fee of just $60 for the day-long event. (Price goes up to $75 after Oct. 22.) Included in your registration is a day full of housing workshops and presentations, loads of opportunities for peer networking, lunch, and exclusive online access to conference materials and attendees database following the event.