HUD HCV Guidebook § 2.6

The procedure for determining rent reasonableness has been streamlined for units receiving assistance
through low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC) or the HOME program. The PHA is not required13 to compare
rents for these units with unassisted local rents, if the rent to owner does not exceed the rent charged for
families who are not participants in the voucher program. The reasonable rent is the lower of the rent charged
to such unassisted families or the applicable payment standard.
Under LIHTC, if the rent requested by the owner exceeds the rent charged in other LIHTC units for families who

12 Notice PIH 2020-19: Rent Reasonableness – Defining Assisted Units for the Housing Choice Voucher and Project-

Based Voucher Programs
13
   The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 Applicability to HUD Public Housing, Section 8 Tenant-Based
Voucher and Section 8 Project-Based Voucher Programs; Notice,” 73 Federal Register 227

Rent Reasonableness                                                                                            5

are not participants in the voucher program, PHA must14 perform a rent comparability study to determine if
the requested rent is reasonable. In these cases, the rent must be the lower of the reasonable rent (as
determined by the rent comparability study) or the payment standard established by the PHA for the unit size
involved.15