Documents you need for affordable housing: a checklist

The documents needed for affordable housing are mostly the same everywhere: a photo ID, proof of everyone's income, proof of who lives with you and sometimes bank statements. Gather copies now, because once a building or housing office asks, you may have as few as 2 to 5 business days to send them, as in San Francisco. Keep them in one folder so you can answer the same day.

When do you need the documents?

You usually need them after you're picked, not when you first apply. In New York City lotteries, where applications are put in a random order, the city says you send documents after your application is selected. The building's marketing agent, the company that runs the lottery for the building, asks for them. San Francisco says the application you send only enters you in the lottery. A longer application with documents comes if a leasing agent, the person who rents out the building's apartments, contacts you.

A Section 8 voucher pays part of your rent to a landlord. The housing office asks for documents when your name comes up on its waitlist, the list of people waiting for a voucher.

The time to answer is short. In San Francisco, the city says you typically have 2 to 5 business days. That's why it pays to collect copies now.

What do almost all applications ask for?

Most offices ask for the same kinds of papers, but every housing office writes its own rule book, so yours may ask for more or less.

A building or office can ask for more than its rules list, so always follow your own notice.

How do you prove your income?

If you work for an employer, bring your pay stubs, the most recent ones, in a row. New York City asks for at least a month of pay: two stubs for most pay schedules and four for weekly pay. If your pay changed or you get bonuses, the agent may also ask for your latest tax return, your W-2 forms or a form your employer fills in. A W-2 is the yearly wage form your employer sends you. Tacoma requires papers from others, such as an employer, to be dated within 60 days of its request.

If you're self-employed, New York City asks for your most recent tax return and an estimate of what you expect to earn, after costs, over the coming year. The estimate can come from an accountant or tax preparer, or be a statement you write yourself. Tacoma asks for the prior year's tax forms plus a signed statement of your income and costs.

If you get benefits, bring the award letters for Social Security, veterans or public assistance income. Tacoma wants a Social Security letter dated within the last 120 days. You can download one from your account on the Social Security Administration's benefit letter page, and Tacoma's housing office helps applicants who can't. Child support and unemployment pay count as income too, so bring proof of what you actually get.

If you have no income, New York City says every unemployed household member over 18 must fill in a Certification of Unemployment form.

Income papers can also be too old. In New York City, your income papers can be no more than 120 days old on the day the building's approval of your income takes effect, which is usually the day you move in. So a pay stub from six months ago won't count.

How do you prove who lives with you?

You show proof for each person who will live in the home. New York City lists birth certificates, Social Security cards and picture IDs, and every adult who will live there comes to the interview. San Francisco asks for proof of who will live with you, especially if you're a legal guardian or share custody of a child. Tacoma also accepts adoption papers, custody papers or school records for a child, and asks for proof of a Social Security number for each household member, with some exceptions.

Which bank statements should you send?

Send exactly the months the request names. San Francisco says to be ready with 3 to 6 months of recent statements, depending on the listing.

In New York City, the agent must ask you about deposits that come in regularly, because a steady deposit could be income you didn't report. Deposits that come once in a while don't need an explanation. Do you keep money in a payment app such as Venmo or Cash App instead of a bank? Then the Marketing Handbook says the app's records can count as your bank statements.

What other proof might you need?

Proof for a preference. In New York City, some apartments go first to certain groups, such as people who already live in that part of the city or city employees. To show you live in the area, you can use a driver's license or other government ID, a lease or a utility bill. City employees show pay stubs from the City of New York. People applying for apartments set aside for people with mobility, vision or hearing disabilities send a form called the Certification of Eligibility for Accessible Unit.

Credit and rental history. San Francisco says leasing agents may look at your credit score and rental history, so keep a list of your past addresses and landlords' phone numbers. In New York City lotteries, the agent can't run a credit check if you have a voucher or other rent help. If you don't, you can choose to show 12 months of rent payments, such as rent receipts or bank statements, instead of a credit check.

How long do you have to send them?

Not long, and it depends on who asks.

Missing the deadline costs you. In New York City, the agent may send you a rejection notice. San Francisco says you may miss your chance at that listing.

Check your spam or junk folder often, and give an alternate contact, such as a friend or social worker, if the application asks for one. If you're turned down over missing papers, our guide to appealing a housing denial shows what to do next.

A worked example: one working parent and one child

Take a single parent with a young child, paid every two weeks. A ready folder for them holds six things:

1. The parent's driver's license.
2. The two most recent pay stubs, which is what New York City asks for when you're paid every two weeks, plus a few older ones in case the agent asks.
3. The most recent federal tax return, with the W-2 wage form.
4. The child's birth certificate.
5. The current lease and a recent electric bill.
6. The last three months of bank statements, saved but not sent until someone asks for them.

When a notice arrives, the parent can answer the same day.

How do you keep the folder ready?

Save a photo or PDF of each document in one folder on your phone. Write down the date on anything that goes out of date, such as pay stubs and benefit letters, and replace them every month or two. Send a copy of your Social Security card only to a building or housing office that asks for it.

Before you collect anything, the qualify check shows which open lotteries and waitlists fit your household's income limit, the most a household can earn and still rent there. You can also browse open listings, including those in New York City. Our guide to how to qualify for affordable housing explains what each office is checking when it reads your documents.