Every Rental Assistance Program in Syracuse Right Now

Onondaga County has at least ten distinct rental assistance programs operating or launching right now. Some pay full rent indefinitely. Some cover six months. Some pay a $303-per-month shelter allowance for a family of three and call it sufficient. They are administered by different agencies, funded by different levels of government, and serve overlapping but different populations.

This is every program currently available, who runs it, and what it actually covers.

Federal Programs (HUD-Funded)

Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers — 5,824 vouchers across three local agencies. Syracuse Housing Authority (4,237 vouchers, 312 Gifford St 9th Floor, 315-470-4400), Christopher Community (1,300+ vouchers, 990 James St, 315-424-1821), and the Village of North Syracuse Housing Authority (287 vouchers, 110 Singleton Ave, 315-458-7077). Tenant pays 30 percent of income; voucher covers the rest up to Fair Market Rent. Indefinite duration. All waitlists are closed except North Syracuse.

HUD-VASH — Housing Choice Vouchers paired with VA case management for homeless veterans. Referral starts at the Syracuse VA Medical Center (800 Irving Ave, 315-425-3463) or the National Call Center at 877-424-3838. Voucher administered by SHA or Christopher Community. Indefinite duration.

Rapid Rehousing — Up to 24 months of rental assistance with decreasing subsidy over time. Funded through HUD Continuum of Care. Administered locally by the Housing and Homelessness Coalition of CNY. Providers include Helio Health FAST Housing (518 James St, 315-472-9964), Salvation Army HALE RRH, Catholic Charities, and others. Referral through Coordinated Entry only.

Permanent Supportive Housing — Indefinite rental assistance plus case management for chronically homeless individuals with disabilities. Approximately 198 units across Onondaga County. Helio Health operates 159. Liberty Resources, Salvation Army, Housing Visions, and Catholic Charities operate the rest. Referral through Coordinated Entry only.

YHDP (Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program) — Up to three years of rental assistance for youth ages 18 to 24. Not yet active in Syracuse but expected soon. $72 million available nationally through HUD’s current funding round. Best suited for studios and one-bedrooms. Would be administered through the Housing and Homelessness Coalition of CNY.

New York State Programs

NYS Housing Access Vouchers (HAVP) — Launched March 1, 2026. $50 million statewide, approximately 1,900 vouchers. Tenant pays 30 percent of income; voucher covers rent up to 120 percent of FMR. Four-year pilot through May 2030. No criminal history screening, no immigration status requirement. Must be homeless or at imminent risk. Referral through County DSS only. Administered by Homes and Community Renewal (HCR).

Healthy Alliance 1115 Medicaid Waiver — Up to six months of full rent for Medicaid recipients with unmet health-related social needs. Renewable annually. $500 million statewide for Health-Related Social Needs services. Administered by Healthy Alliance Foundation for Central New York. Local partner: Inclusive Alliance (315-899-1043, PO Box 12167, Syracuse). Screening through healthcare providers and social services contacts.

Onondaga County DSS Programs

All administered at 421 Montgomery Street, 2nd Floor, Syracuse, NY 13202. Main phone: (315) 435-2700.

Rental Supplement Program (RSP) — Monthly rental supplement for households earning up to 50 percent of AMI ($51,750 for a family of four). No fixed end date. Does not require applicant to be homeless. Currently has a waitlist. Approximately 100 households to be served.

PASS (Public Assistance Shelter Supplement) — Shelter allowance for families receiving Temporary Assistance. Monthly maximums in Onondaga County range from $203 (single adult, no children) to $413 (seven or more with children). No fixed end date; tied to continued TA eligibility.

Rental Arrears Assistance — For tenants behind on rent facing eviction. Covers back rent, security deposits, first month’s rent, moving allowance, and 30-day emergency storage. Income-dependent eligibility. Walk in at 421 Montgomery, 2nd floor. Call (315) 435-2700, prompt 1, prompt 3, ask for Supervisor of the Day.

SAEF (Shelter Arrears Eviction Forestallment) — State pilot. Onondaga County received approximately $600,000. Covers up to six months of rent. Income limit: double the federal poverty level ($62,400 for family of four). Head of household must be a permanent U.S. resident.

CHANCE Program

CHANCE does not pay rent directly. It provides incentives to landlords and facilitates housing connections for families on Temporary Assistance — covering security deposits, finder’s fee bonuses, and repair funds. Connections are facilitated through Padmission, a web-based platform that centralizes landlord engagement for homeless services systems. The majority of CHANCE-eligible families will have one of the rental assistance programs listed above, but which one varies case by case.

Other Local Resources

Catholic Charities of Onondaga County — 262 East Onondaga Street, Syracuse. (315) 378-4054 x23. May provide first month’s rent, last month’s rent, or security deposit. Walk-ins welcome.

Salvation Army — (315) 479-3626. May provide first month’s rent or security deposit.

CNY Fair Housing — cnyfairhousing.org. Mobility counseling, landlord repair incentives (up to $3,000), source-of-income discrimination assistance.

211 CNY — Dial 2-1-1 for referrals to all social services in Central New York.

The Landscape

1,192 homeless individuals were counted across Onondaga, Oswego, and Cayuga counties in the January 2024 Point-in-Time Count. 71 percent were in Onondaga County. Homelessness in the region has increased over 60 percent since 2019. Family homelessness has outpaced individual homelessness for the first time in more than a decade.

Against that, the combined capacity of these programs: roughly 5,824 Section 8 vouchers (waitlists closed), 198 PSH units (referral-only), an unknown number of Rapid Rehousing slots cycling at 12-to-24-month intervals, a brand-new state voucher program with 1,900 vouchers statewide, a Medicaid waiver covering six months of rent, and county-level supplements starting at $203 per month.

The programs exist. The funding exists. The gap between supply and demand has not closed.