How many subsidized housing units are available in Washington state?
Data updated August 27, 2024
About 95,356 in 2023. Approximately 12% of these were unoccupied and available to rent. Federally subsidized rental housing began with 1937’s US Housing Act, which created the United States Housing Authority and provided financial assistance to state and local governments for housing low-income people. Since then, the government has provided housing assistance to low-income renters through programs overseen by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Showing data for
In 2023
95.4K
subsidized housing units existed in Washington state
In 2023
11.4K
subsidized housing units were unoccupied and available to rent
In 2023
12%
of all subsidized housing units were available to rent
There were about 83,400 occupied subsidized housing units in 2022, and around 1,102,623 occupied rental units — subsidized and unsubsidized — in Washington. That means 7.6% of all occupied rentals in Washington were provided by housing assistance programs. In 2022, 12% of all subsidized units in Washington were vacant, compared with 4.2% of all rental properties.
The number of available subsidized housing units varies throughout Washington. Administered by local public housing authorities (PHAs), availability is shaped by local policy and factors like geography (e.g., urban vs. rural vs. suburban), need, and more.
In 2023, Walla Walla County had the most subsidized housing units per 10K people.
Subsidized housing can take different forms — from high-rise buildings to garden-style apartments to single-family dwellings, duplexes, and more — but all are accessed via eight different housing assistance programs under HUD. These are classified as either public housing; tenant-based programs; or privately-owned, project-based housing.
Subscribe to get unbiased, data-driven insights sent to your inbox weekly.
Tenant-based programs — widely recognized today as the Housing Choice Voucher program — are the most common form of housing assistance, providing 66,800 housing units in 2023. Housing vouchers allow recipients to choose their own housing in the private market, provided it meets program requirements. These vouchers account for 70% of the subsidized housing stock. In Washington state, tenant-based programs are more common than in the US, where they account for 54% of the subsidized housing stock.
Tenant assistance was the most common type of housing program in 2023.
Subsidized housing programs play a crucial role in providing affordable housing options to low-income families. Privately-owned, project-based programs provide subsidized housing in larger, multifamily housing developments through agreements between landlords and HUD, and account for 19% of all subsidized housing. These programs are vital in ensuring that many people have access to safe and affordable housing.
The remainder of subsidized units — 10.85% of the total — are public housing, where units are built and managed by local housing agencies.
