Once we accept a rent determination for a unit, that amount will be reflected in the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) contract, and remain in effect for one year. The amounts of CHA's subsidized portion, and the tenant portion will only change if the tenant has demonstrated that they are experiencing financial difficulty and can no longer afford their portion.
When the initial terms of the Housing Assistance Payment contract expire, if the tenant remains in the unit CHA will continue to pay their tenant portion. If the market has changed, or you believe you could get more for your unit, we can submit a Request for Rent Increase. It takes CHA about 30 days to evaluate and respond to a Request for Rent Increase. You can submit a Request for Rent Increase once per year once the initial HAP contract terms expire.
Similar to the initial rent determination, several factors are taken into account to approve a rent increase--but in short they will look at other market comparables and determine if the request is fair or not.
CHA retains the right to deny, or even reduce the CHA portion following their market evaluation.
Please review the attached PDF on "Approving a Rent Increase" and some example scenarios.