Source of income discrimination in NYC: what landlords and brokers can and cannot do with voucher tenants

Published 10/17/2026 · 6 min read · By Bulwark

Since 2008 it has been illegal in New York City to refuse a tenant because they pay rent with a voucher or other public assistance. The NYC Commission on Human Rights enforces it actively, including with undercover testers, and settlements now routinely include set-aside apartments for voucher holders on top of damages and penalties.

What counts as lawful source of income

Any lawful source of payment, including federal, state and city subsidies: Section 8 (Housing Choice Vouchers), CityFHEPS, FHEPS, HASA, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and G.I. Bill housing allowances, among others.

What is prohibited

• Refusing to rent, or to renew, because a tenant uses a voucher or subsidy
• Ads, listings or messages that say “no programs”, “no vouchers”, “Section 8 not accepted”, or that prefer non-voucher tenants
• Refusing to fill in or sign the program’s paperwork, which the Commission treats as a refusal to rent
• Setting conditions only for voucher holders: a higher income requirement, a different deposit, a different lease
• Telling a voucher holder a unit is taken when it is not

Who is covered

Most New York City rentals, regardless of the number of units in the building. The exceptions are narrow: certain small owner-occupied buildings, and units that are not publicly advertised. Brokers and managing agents are covered on their own, separately from the owner. If you think one of the exceptions applies to you, get advice before relying on it; the Commission reads them narrowly.

How it is enforced

• A dedicated Source of Income Unit at the Commission, which can intervene the same day when a voucher holder is turned away
• Testing: matched pairs, phone, online and in-person tests of landlords and brokers
• Penalties and damages: the Commission has filed 176 cases since 2018 and obtained more than $780,000 for complainants since 2014. A 40-building manager was fined $20,000 after testing; other settlements required 5 to 20 apartments set aside for voucher holders, staff training and posted notices.

How to screen lawfully

• Write your screening criteria down and apply them identically to every applicant
• Apply any income requirement only to the tenant’s share of the rent, not the full rent, which is how the Commission reads the law
• Complete program paperwork promptly; the packet and the inspection are the program’s process, not the tenant’s problem
• Train every person who answers listings, including the leasing agent and the super; one wrong text message is evidence
• Keep the records: who applied, when, what was decided and why

Why voucher tenants can be the best tenants

The program pays its share of the rent directly and on schedule, and the caseworker is a second point of contact when something goes wrong. What makes voucher leasing slow is paperwork done wrong. That is the part we handle: program housing covers the packet, the inspection and the lease, and the CityFHEPS and Section 8 guides walk through each program.