HUD Housing Programs: Tenants’ Rights (The Green Book): 4.4.4.2 Rent Choice and “Switching” From Flat Rent to Income-Based Rent
Under a policy known as “rent choice,”548 all public housing tenants have the right, once each year, to choose between having their rent set at the flat rent or based on their income. Ordinarily tenants will only choose a flat rent if they have relatively high income, which would result in a higher income-based rent. If a family chooses a flat rent, the PHA does not pay any utility allowance for any tenant-paid utilities,549 which an income-based rent tenant would receive.