How Brokers Get Paid on Voucher Deals in NYC: Forms, Amounts and Deadlines by Program

On an NYC voucher deal, the tenant almost never pays you. You get paid by the agency running the tenant's program, or by the landlord, and each agency has its own form and its own rules. Get the form wrong, file late or miss an eligibility condition and the fee is gone. Resubmitting rarely fixes it.

Here is the short version:

Last checked: September 2026. Fee amounts and forms change; confirm the current version before you file. This is general information, not legal advice.

CityFHEPS: The HRA-121 Rides in the Packet

HRA pays "up to 15% of the annual rent" on CityFHEPS placements, according to its landlords and brokers page and the January 2026 landlord FAQ. The request is the HRA-121, Broker's Request for Enhanced Fee Payment by Check.

You don't file it separately. The DSS-8h packet cover sheet asks the housing specialist whether the HRA-121 and your broker license are included "if a Broker was used." Your details also go in two other places, and they must match:

• the broker page of the landlord's DSS-8f Landlord Package (agency, your name, license number, address), and
• the broker section of the DSS-8b tenant contact form.

DSS told the State Comptroller in its corrective action plan (October 2025) that packets are returned when the landlord's broker page conflicts with the HRA-121. One typo in your license number costs the whole household time.

To qualify, the HRA-121 requires a current Certificate of Occupancy (or equivalent), no occupancy change inconsistent with it, no dangerous or hazardous violations, your license in good standing, no affiliation with the owner, and a lease of at least one year. The checks are issued after HRA approves the packet; DSS-8j says they "may be mailed or may be picked up by the housing specialist." HRA publishes no turnaround time.

For the amounts by bedroom size and the affiliation rules, see does CityFHEPS pay a broker fee. HRA has told the City Council it plans to cut the fee; that post tracks where it stands.

FHEPS: Same Form, Narrower Eligibility

FHEPS is the state-funded rent supplement HRA runs for families leaving shelter or at risk of losing their housing. HRA's FHEPS landlord fact sheet (HRA-146q, August 2025) lists "an enhanced broker fee of up to 15% of the annual rent," but only "if the family is leaving HRA or DHS shelter (and only if the family is leaving HRA or DHS shelter)." A footnote adds that the fee "will be offered for as long as funding remains available."

So an FHEPS family moving from one apartment to another, or using FHEPS to stay put, doesn't bring a broker fee with it. Ask whether the family is in shelter before you commit time. Our FHEPS vs CityFHEPS explainer covers how to tell the programs apart.

SOTA: Listed, With a Typo Worth Asking About

Special One-Time Assistance pays one year of rent for eligible DHS shelter clients who move within the city, elsewhere in New York State or to another state. HRA's landlord page says the year of assistance is now "paid on a monthly basis." HRA's landlord page lists a "Broker's fee equal to up to 15% of annual income" for SOTA. "Income" is almost certainly meant to read "rent," as it does for every other program on the page, and HRA posts the same HRA-121 form in its SOTA documents. Confirm the amount with the client's shelter housing specialist before quoting it. Our SOTA guide for landlords covers the rest of the program.

NYCHA Section 8: The Housing Navigation Unit Form

NYCHA pays brokers directly through its Housing Navigation Unit (HNU). The form is the HNU Real Estate Broker Fee Request Form (NYCHA 059.853), dated July 2023. What it says:

The amount. Up to 15% of the annualized rent, paid "to the broker of record under which the undersigned licensed real estate agent operates." If the tenant also qualifies for an HRA broker fee, NYCHA pays 15% minus what HRA pays, and you collect HRA's share from HRA. NYCHA pays nothing if HRA covers the full 15%.

Who qualifies. The voucher holder must have a newly issued NYCHA tenant-based voucher, "issued more than 60 days prior to the submission of the Request for Tenancy Approval form." Transfer vouchers are excluded. The unit must be in the five boroughs, the owner can't be related to the tenant or on HUD's debarred list, and you can't be related to the tenant. You must have "actually found the unit."

Which side you can be on. The form covers a broker who helps the voucher holder find and lease the unit, "or who exclusively represents the owner of a unit located by the voucher holder," and has you tick whether you represent the voucher holder or the owner. It predates the FARE Act. If you're the owner's broker, read the FARE Act and voucher broker fees first.

The deadline. Within 30 days after NYCHA approves the rental package and the tenant receives keys, email HNU@nycha.nyc.gov with:

• the signed form (signed by you and the voucher holder, who signs after getting keys),
• a W-9 with company information,
• a copy of your license,
• one more contact person at your company (name, phone, email),
• a letter from your brokerage's bank showing account and routing numbers, and
• a voided check.

Payment goes by direct deposit to the brokerage. You also certify, under penalty of perjury, that you haven't taken a fee from the tenant beyond a standard application fee and won't collect one from any other third party.

Check the program is still running. NYCHA's two FAQ pages about the broker fee policy and the Housing Navigation Unit returned "page not found" when we checked in September 2026, although the form is still posted. Call the HNU hotline at (212) 306-3570 before you rely on it for a deal.

Homeless Veterans: HRA's Broker Bonus

HRA's landlord page lists a 15% "Broker Bonus," figured on the annual rent, "for brokers who connect homeless veterans with apartments or units that can be subsidized using HUD VASH, HPD Section 8, and MRT vouchers." HRA doesn't post a separate form for it online. Ask the veteran's HPD or VA housing specialist which request form they need and whether it goes in the packet. Our HUD-VASH guide explains how VASH leasing works in the city.

Cash Assistance Moves: The Older Voucher Forms

HRA also has broker forms tied to Cash Assistance rather than to a rental subsidy: the W-147P Broker's Fee Voucher and the W-147JJ Broker's Statement for Fee Payment by Check. Both are revised to April 2011. They set the fee at "50% of the monthly rent," and the W-147P must be submitted to HRA's Office of Central Processing "within 30 days after physical possession." They carry the same certificate-of-occupancy, violation, license and non-affiliation conditions as the HRA-121.

We don't know how often HRA still issues these. If a Job Center worker hands one to your client, it tells you the fee and the deadline, so file it on time.

When No Agency Pays

A Section 8 household outside NYCHA's HNU program, an HPD voucher holder who isn't a homeless veteran, a FHEPS family not leaving shelter: none of these bring an agency check. CityFHEPS households coming from the community are a maybe. The HRA-121 covers shelter exits "as well as certain other households," so ask the housing specialist whether a fee is approved for that case before you work it.

Since the FARE Act, a landlord's broker can't charge those tenants either. Your options are the landlord's fee or a written tenant-representation agreement where the tenant chooses to hire and pay you. Be careful with the second one: a voucher household's budget is thin, and on CityFHEPS and FHEPS deals any side payment from the tenant is prohibited outright.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I get paid by both HRA and NYCHA on one deal?

Only up to a combined 15% of the annual rent. NYCHA subtracts whatever HRA pays, and pays nothing if HRA pays the full 15%.

What happens if I miss NYCHA's 30-day window?

The form makes 30 days after key receipt a condition of payment. Treat a late filing as a lost fee and calendar the deadline the day the tenant gets keys.

Does the tenant have to sign anything?

For NYCHA, yes: the voucher holder signs Section E confirming they got keys and hold a qualifying voucher. For CityFHEPS, the tenant signs the lease and packet forms, and you sign the HRA-121.

Who do I call about a CityFHEPS broker check?

HRA's Rental Assistance Call Center at 718-557-1399, weekdays 9 AM to 5 PM, or HRA's online inquiry form.

Tracking six forms across a dozen clients is where fees slip. VoucherMatch for brokers keeps each client's program, shopping letter and deal stage in one place, next to listings from landlords who already accept vouchers.