Caribou Maine: Housing

Caribou Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Section 8 Housing

Caribou Municipal Building
25 High Street
Caribou, Maine 04736

Stephen Wentworth, Housing Director Phone: (207)493-4234
Fax: (207)493-4228
E-mail: housing-ceo@cariboumaine.org

About the Caribou Housing Agency

The Caribou Housing Agency was started in July 1977.

The purpose of our Agency is to administer the City of Caribou Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program and other HUD Housing Programs in accordance with Federal guidelines in order to provide decent, safe, and sanitary housing to Very Low-Income families including the Elderly and Handicapped.

The Caribou Housing Agency (CHA) serves the City of Caribou, and the surrounding communities of Caswell, Connor, Limestone, New Sweden, Washburn, and Woodland.

Our Mission

The mission of the Caribou Housing Agency is to provide safe, quality and affordable housing for eligible persons in need of assistance, regardless of race, color, sex, religion, national or ethnic origin, age, handicap, marital status, sexual orientation, familial status, or disability, and to promote opportunities for the growth and development of residents as well as our community.

Section 8 Housing

What is Section 8?

In the Housing Choice Voucher Program, commonly known as “Section 8”, CHA provides rental assistance to low-income families in the private rental market. CHA forms a partnership with families and landlords to provide housing opportunities throughout the Caribou area. Through the Housing Choice Voucher Program families maintain secure, quality housing in neighborhoods of their choice. Vouchers are issued as a “tenant-based” subsidy which means the rental assistance is mobile and follows the family, so it may be transferred to any city or state the tenant chooses to live.

The Housing Agency pays a fixed amount toward the rent, based on the household income and the applicable payment standard set by CHA. Participants are responsible for finding a suitable unit which has a gross rent amount that falls within the assigned rent limits -- and can pass a CHA Housing Quality Standards (HQS) inspection.

Who Qualifies?

Section 8 eligibility is based on household income, criminal history, and citizenship status at the time you come to the top of the waiting list.

Everyone is encouraged to apply. CHA does not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation, color, family status, mental or physical disability.

How to Apply

The first step is to submit a Preliminary Application when the waiting list is open and generally, the waiting list is always open. A Preliminary Application can be obtained by:

Visiting our office the Caribou Municipal Building, located at 25 High Street, Caribou, Maine
Mailing a Self Addressed Stamped envelope with a letter requesting that an application be sent to you; or
Downloading a Preliminary Application

Once you have completed the Preliminary Application form, you can mail, fax or drop the completed Form & all required documentation back to us.

How Long is the Waiting List?

The waiting list moves when people leave the program and their vacated vouchers become available to issue to new applicants. Therefore, the average wait may be anywhere from 12-18 months from the time that we receive your Preliminary Application until you may receive a letter from us.

Do you have any Preferences or Emergency Assistance?

Unfortunately, the CHA does not have any preferences or emergency assistance. Our Waiting List only works according to the date and time that your Preliminary Application was received in our office.

Keep Your Application up to Date with Address Moves

It is critical that you notify us of any change in your address because we will contact you by letter when you reach the top of the waiting list; returned mail will prompt the cancellation of the application.

Closing the Waiting List

If CHA plans to close the Section 8 waiting list an announcement will be made on this website, in the local newspapers, and on the local cable access channel.

Reaching the Top of the Waiting List

The letter you receive once you reach the top of the waiting list will schedule you to attend a Section 8 orientation, the first of two meetings. All adults (age 18 years and older) that will be living in your household are required to attend to complete the initial intake process. This first large group meeting will review program eligibility requirements and initial paperwork is completed.

Self-Sufficiency Programs

Family Self-Sufficiency Program

The Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) Program is a work-incentive program that helps Section 8 participants become more economically independent. Clients who choose to participate meet with an FSS Coordinator to create a 5-year plan to earn more money through work. Each FSS client receives free one-on-one career planning assistance and ongoing job training and employment referrals.

As the FSS client begins earning more income from work, a portion of their rent increase is matched in an escrow savings account. The savings account is then given to the client, tax-free when he or she graduates from the program.

What is FSS?

Section 8 Homeownership Program

The Section 8 Homeownership Program allows first-time homeowners participating in the Housing Choice Voucher Program to use the monthly subsidy to meet their monthly homeownership expenses (i.e. mortgage payments, utilities, maintenance and upkeep of the property). Much like the Section 8 rental program, the family's share of the mortgage is an affordable percentage of their income, generally between 30 and 40 percent of their monthly income.