Housing Providers (Landlords)

All Dane County landlords are Section 8 housing providers.

Housing providers cannot refuse to lease to a tenant because they receive rent assistance, including Housing Choice Vouchers (Section 8). This is prohibited by Dane County Ordinance 31.10.

List a vacancy

Process

  1. Fill out the Request for Tenancy Approval Form (RFTA)

    If an approved applicant for one of your units has a Section 8 voucher, they will provide you with a Request for Tenancy Approval Form (RFTA).

    You will need to complete the RFTA and provide a proposed 1-year unsigned lease. You or the tenant will need to send these documents to CDA before their voucher expires.

    We will verify that the information on the RFTA and the lease match. We will also verify that the rent and utilities fall within the tenant's gross rent voucher limit.

  2. Inspection

    A Section 8 Housing Inspector will contact you to schedule an inspection of the proposed unit. The Inspector will also review the rent and determine whether it is reasonable and comparable to similar units.

    Inspection Standards

  3. Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) Contract

    Send a copy of the signed lease to CDA. We will create the Housing Assistance Payment contract (HAP) and send it to you for signature.

    • Sign the HAP contract and send to CDA.
    • Attach the Tenancy Addendum to your copy of the signed lease.
    • If requested by CDA, send us your W-9 tax id form and direct deposit forms.

    We cannot make payments until you send us the signed HAP contract. We release payments around the first and fifteenth of each month.

    To change address and ownership information, please notify our office right away so there is no delay in receiving your monthly payment.

Inspection Standards

National Standards for the Physical Inspection of Real Estate (NSPIRE)

Starting May 1, 2026, CDA will use NSPIRE as our inspection standards.

Housing Quality Standards (HQS)

Rent Increases

If you want to change the rent or utility responsibilities, please submit your renewal notices to S8renewalrequests@cityofmadison.com.

You must request the proposed rent increase at least 60 days before the start date of the new lease.

Housing providers cannot change the rent during the initial lease term. We will not approve rent increases until you have corrected any failed items identified by the most recent inspection.

We may request information about the rents charged for other units on the premises. We will consider unit size and length of tenancy when comparing units.

Lease Violations & Eviction Notices

You must send us copies of any lease violations or eviction notices, including any court filings.

Additional Resources

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