Inman

Apartments.com debuts low-income-housing search tool

Apartments.com has introduced a new search option for Web surfers who are looking for low-income housing.

Visitors to Apartments.com can now choose “Type of Housing” on the Search Criteria page to find apartment communities that offer affordable housing solutions for low-income residents.

The addition of an affordable housing option to the Apartments.com search criteria allows renters to quickly identify properties that match their rental requirements. When a renter selects the “Income Qualifications Apply” option from the “Type of Housing” choices, only properties with rental options based on income will be returned.

“Providing Apartments.com visitors the option to search properties based on income qualifications allows renters to streamline their search process to easily find properties that match their needs,” said Tim Fagan, senior vice president and general manager for Apartments.com. “This addition is part of an ongoing process for Apartments.com to maximize the search process for our visitors and ultimately provide highly qualified leads to our advertisers.”

Apartments.com advertisers will be able to identify if income qualifications apply for some or all of the rental units in their community. An income grid can be displayed in online ads that shows the maximum income qualifications for one to six people.

According to federal guidelines, millions of American tenants are considered “rent burdened,” which means that more than 30 percent of a family’s household income is used for housing costs. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates that almost half of the 33.4 million rental households nationwide are eligible for affordable housing.

According to Rental Housing Online, 1.1 million people receiving housing assistance live in public housing units; 1.4 million receive assistance through housing vouchers or Section 8 certificates; and 1.6 million live in private, project-based units under HUD subsidy programs and low-income housing tax credits.

Apartments.com has more than 170 affiliates across the country, including the Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. Apartments.com is a division of Chicago-based Classified Ventures LLC.

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