The New Jersey Division of Housing and Community Resources has started accepting pre-applications for the statewide Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program Waiting List this morning.

People can go online at www.WaitlistCheck.com/NJ559 from now until 5pm on February 3rd to submit a preliminary application to be entered into a lottery to get on the waiting list for a Section 8 voucher that can be used statewide for housing.

The Section 8 HCV Program is a federally-funded program that provides housing subsidies to New Jersey residents so they can obtain decent, safe, and sanitary housing.

All Section 8 HCV Program pre-applications will be selected through a random lottery process.

Applicants who qualify for a preference will receive priority placement on the waiting list.

Preferences include United States Armed Forces veterans and their spouses, people experiencing homelessness, domestic violence survivors, local residents, and people with disabilities.

A total of 20,000 households will be selected in the random lottery, enabling those households to be added to the waiting list to be awarded vouchers as they become available.

Applicants must be 18 years of age or older to apply or be an emancipated minor. An email address is required to apply.

If an applicant does not have one, they can create an email address during the pre-application process.

Applicants selected in the random lottery to be placed on the Section 8 HCV waiting list will be notified via email, which may take several weeks.

Applicants can check their status after February 24, 2023, online at www.WaitlistCheck.com/NJ559.

At the time of their selection, they must meet the income limits of the county where they want to live and provide proof of residency.