Section 8 Utility Allowance NYC: 2026 NYCHA Rates by Bedroom

What Is a Utility Allowance?

A utility allowance is a fixed monthly dollar amount, set by bedroom count and fuel type, that stands in for the tenant's utility bills. Under 24 CFR 982.517, every housing authority must keep a schedule based on the typical cost of utilities paid by energy-conservative households in housing of similar size and type in the same locality.

• Added to the rent, not paid on top of it: Federal rules define gross rent as the rent to owner plus any utility allowance (24 CFR 982.4), and the gross rent is the figure compared with the payment standard.
• The same rule from the other direction: NYCHA and HPD both say "utilities paid by the tenant must be subtracted from the Payment Standard." That is shorthand for the highest contract rent that keeps the gross rent at the standard. Nothing is deducted from what the owner is paid.
• Smaller of apartment size or voucher size: A family with a one-bedroom voucher that rents a two-bedroom gets the one-bedroom allowance, unless the larger unit was approved as a reasonable accommodation (24 CFR 982.517(d)).

ExampleTake a one-bedroom at a hypothetical $2,500 where the tenant pays cooking gas and electric. NYCHA adds its $141 allowance, so the gross rent is $2,641. That is under NYCHA's $2,734 one-bedroom payment standard for new rentals and transfers, so the tenant's share stays at the standard 30 percent of income.

2026 NYCHA Utility Allowance Rates

NYCHA publishes one schedule for all five boroughs. The rates below took effect January 1, 2026 and apply to NYCHA vouchers. HPD vouchers use a separate schedule, covered below.

How to add up the lines for one apartment

Most tenant-paid setups are one of three combinations:

• Tenant pays only cooking gas and electric, owner provides heat and hot water: $141 for a one-bedroom.
• Tenant pays cooking gas, electric, gas heat and gas hot water: $141 plus $112, which is $253 for a one-bedroom.
• All-electric two-bedroom where the tenant pays everything: $167 plus $138, which is $305.

Key pointThere is no form for the tenant to file. The housing authority works out the allowance from the utilities marked as tenant-paid on the Request for Tenancy Approval, according to HUD's guidebook chapter on utility allowances.

HPD and CityFHEPS use their own schedules

The schedule to use is the one from the agency that issued the voucher.

Watch outThe CityFHEPS maximum assumes all utilities are in the lease.DSS states that the CityFHEPS payment standards are the maximum rent only if all utilities are included in the lease, and that packages submitted on or after March 1, 2026, or with a lease starting April 1, 2026 or later, must use the 2026 amounts. The CityFHEPS payment standards guide has the rent limits.

VoucherMatch could not find a utility allowance schedule published by New York State HCR for its own vouchers in the city. HCR voucher holders should ask HCR which schedule applies to them.

How Utility Allowances Affect Your Rent Payment

The allowance does not change what the owner collects. It changes who pays it.

At NYCHA the total tenant payment is the highest of these four amounts, according to its Administrative Plan:

• 30 percent of monthly adjusted income
• 10 percent of monthly income
• A welfare rent amount, where one applies
• A $50 minimum rent

When the allowance is bigger than the tenant's share

A tenant with very low income can end up owing the owner nothing and receiving a utility reimbursement. Federal rules define it as the part of the HAP that exceeds the rent to owner (24 CFR 982.514).

ExampleTake a one-bedroom at a hypothetical $2,500 where the tenant pays cooking gas and electric ($141) and the tenant's total tenant payment is the $50 minimum. Gross rent is $2,641, the HAP is $2,591, NYCHA pays the owner the full $2,500, the tenant pays the owner nothing, and the remaining $91 is the utility reimbursement.

NYCHA's Administrative Plan says it pays that difference "in the form of a monthly or annual utility reimbursement payment." NYCHA has not published the dates those payments go out. Tenants expecting one should call the Customer Contact Center at 718-707-7771.

Utility Arrangements and Strategic Considerations

The choice between including utilities and having the tenant pay comes down to how much contract rent fits under the payment standard and who carries the risk of high bills.

Watch outHPD owners should not bill tenants for unmetered utilities.HPD adds a rule for its own vouchers: owners should not make a tenant responsible for a utility that is not directly metered by the utility company or individually sub-metered by the owner, according to HPD's Section 8 Property Owners FAQ.

For a side-by-side view from the tenant's seat, see utilities included vs. utility allowance.

What Utilities Are Covered

NYCHA's 2026 schedule covers cooking gas, electricity, heat and hot water by gas, oil or electricity, and heat pumps. Those are the only rows it publishes.

• Categories federal rules allow: space heating, air conditioning, cooking, water heating, water, sewer, trash collection, other electric, and tenant-supplied refrigerators and ranges (24 CFR 982.517(b)).
• Water and sewage: In New York City, these rows appear on HPD's schedule and not on NYCHA's.
• Air conditioning: Not on NYCHA's schedule. The regulation requires an air conditioning allowance only where the majority of housing units in the market are centrally air-conditioned or have appropriate wiring for tenant-installed units.
• Telephone, cable and internet: Telephone is excluded by the regulation, which also bars allowances for non-essential costs such as cable or satellite television. HUD's guidebook adds wireless internet to that list. Bundling cable or internet with the rent does not change the calculation.

Special Circumstances and Reasonable Accommodations

A household that includes a person with disabilities can ask for a higher utility allowance, and the housing authority must approve it if the higher amount is needed as a reasonable accommodation (24 CFR 982.517(e)).

• Who asks: The request comes from the household.
• What to provide: HUD's guidebook says the family should give the housing authority the information needed to work out the extra amount, and uses an air conditioning allowance as its example in a place where the schedule has none.
• Effect for the owner: A higher allowance raises the unit's gross rent for that household. The contract rent does not change.

Federal rules also let a housing authority keep a separate, energy-efficient schedule for buildings that meet LEED or Energy Star standards (24 CFR 982.517(b)(2)(ii)). NYCHA's 2026 page publishes a single schedule. Its heat pump row replaced the two heat pump rows on the 2025 schedule.

Documenting Utility Arrangements

Who pays each utility is recorded in three places, and they have to agree.

Watch outAt NYCHA, changing who pays utilities means a new lease and HAP contract.Changing the arrangement later is not a simple amendment. NYCHA's Administrative Plan requires a new lease and a new HAP contract when the tenant-supplied and owner-supplied utilities change, and NYCHA redetermines rent reasonableness when it approves the change.

If a utility marked as included turns out to be tenant-paid, the allowance has to be added and the gross rent goes up. A lease that passed the payment standard and 40 percent tests on paper may no longer pass them.

Utility Allowance Changes at Recertification

A new schedule reaches an existing tenant at the next regular recertification, not on January 1. NYCHA's Administrative Plan says new allowances are applied "at the first regular recertification, after the allowance is adopted," and that an interim recertification keeps the old allowance. A new lease uses the allowance in effect when the lease is signed.

Federal rules require a housing authority to review its schedule every year and revise a category when the utility rate has changed by 10 percent or more (24 CFR 982.517(c)). NYCHA's last two schedules both took effect on January 1.

Key pointIn both cases the owner still collects the contract rent. An owner planning a rent increase should check the new gross rent against the payment standard NYCHA uses for recertifications, which is $3,058 for a two-bedroom as of January 1, 2026. The guide to requesting a Section 8 rent increase in NYC covers that process.

What This Means for NYC Landlords

• You collect the approved contract rent whether utilities are included or not. The allowance shifts part of it from the tenant to the housing authority.
• The ceiling that matters is the payment standard minus the allowance for the utilities the tenant pays. Above it, the tenant pays the difference and the 40 percent test applies at move-in.
• Use the schedule of the agency that issued the voucher. NYCHA's and HPD's differ on electric heat, heat pumps, water and sewage.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Section 8 utility allowance? It is the housing authority's estimate of what a tenant spends on the utilities the lease makes them pay, set by bedroom size and fuel type under 24 CFR 982.517. It is added to the contract rent to get the gross rent, and the gross rent is compared with the payment standard.

Does Section 8 pay for utilities? Not directly. The tenant pays the utility company. The allowance lowers the rent the tenant pays the owner by the same amount, and a tenant whose allowance is larger than their share receives the difference as a utility reimbursement.

Which utilities does the NYCHA utility allowance cover? NYCHA's 2026 schedule has rows for cooking gas, electricity, heat and hot water by gas, oil or electricity, and heat pumps.

• No row: water, sewer, trash or air conditioning
• Excluded: telephone, cable and internet

Is there one HUD utility allowance schedule for 2026? No. HUD requires each housing authority to maintain its own schedule for its area. In New York City, NYCHA and HPD each publish one.

Should a landlord include utilities in the rent for a Section 8 unit? Including them leaves the full payment standard available for contract rent, and the owner pays the bills. With tenant-paid utilities the contract rent ceiling drops by the allowance. The owner collects the approved contract rent in both cases. The post on utilities included vs. utility allowance compares the two setups.

How often does NYCHA update utility allowances? Federal rules require a review every year.

• NYCHA's 2025 and 2026 schedules both took effect on January 1.
• A new schedule is applied to an existing tenant at the next regular recertification.

Can a Section 8 tenant get a higher utility allowance because of a disability? Yes. On request from a household that includes a person with disabilities, the housing authority must approve a higher allowance if it is needed as a reasonable accommodation.

Where does a landlord report who pays the utilities on a Section 8 rental? On the Request for Tenancy Approval in the rental packet, and in the lease, which must specify the utilities and appliances supplied by the owner and by the tenant. Changing the arrangement later requires a new lease and HAP contract at NYCHA.