How to apply for NYC Housing Connect lotteries

NYC Housing Connect is the city's portal for affordable rental and homeownership lotteries financed by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) and the Housing Development Corporation (HDC). Homes are offered to households of many income levels and sizes. Qualified applicants are chosen through a randomized lottery, HPD says. The official guides are at HPD's Housing Connect Application Guides and in HPD's Applying for Affordable Housing guidebook. NYC 311 covers the same process.

Housing is treated as affordable when it costs about one-third or less of household income, the guidebook says. To qualify, everyone who will live in the home must meet the income and household-size rules on that listing. Some listings also accept a voucher to cover the rent.

We keep a live list of open lotteries at /housing-lotteries, and a running list of those closing this week.

Who this is for

This guide is for New Yorkers who want to apply for an affordable rental or a homeownership lottery through the city — including households that will use a voucher for the rent. Housing Connect is not a single waiting list you join once. You create one account, then apply to each lottery that fits your household before that listing's deadline.

Quick tips before you start

• Have household size, income and address details ready so your profile is complete before you hit “Apply Now.”
• If a listing is about to close, start with our closing-this-week list so you do not miss a deadline today or this week.
• There is no fee to apply to city-subsidized lotteries. If someone asks you to pay, use the reporting contacts in the section below.
• Pick one way to apply — online or by mail — and use only that method. The official guidebook's warning about sending both is in step 2.

1. Create an account and keep it current

Start at housingconnect.nyc.gov (also linked as nyc.gov/housingconnect). In order to apply online, you must create or sign in to a Housing Connect account, 311 says. Once you register, you provide information about everyone in your household, including income, assets and disability status. HPD's guidebook says this information determines your eligibility, so keep it up to date before you apply.

After you enter household information, you can opt in to re-rentals and resales in the “Housing Choices” section of your profile. Those are existing affordable homes that come up when someone moves out. You cannot search for them the way you search open lotteries, but if you say yes you can be randomly selected as they become available, the guidebook says.

You can search open lotteries by borough or neighborhood, household size, household income, rent, nearby subway lines, amenities and application deadline, according to 311 and HPD.

2. Apply once — online or by mail, not both

HPD says you may apply online or by mail. Online, go to the Open Lotteries page, check that your household information is complete, and use the “Apply Now” button on a listing that fits. Every listing shows how many homes are available, occupancy limits, the qualifying income range and the deadline.

If you cannot use the website, follow the directions in the listing advertisement to request a paper application. Completed original paper applications must be returned by regular mail only, HPD's application-guides page says. Applications submitted after the deadline will not be considered.

Do not submit both a paper application and an online application for the same lottery. HPD's guidebook says that will disqualify you. Your chances are the same either way, the guidebook says, so pick one method and use it before the deadline. The application period can last from a few weeks to a couple of months.

Applicants to city-subsidized affordable housing are not required to pay a fee, 311 says. If you are asked to pay one, 311 says to report it: for HPD, call the HPD Office of the Inspector General at (212) 825-3502; for HDC, email hdccompliance@nychdc.com.

3. After the deadline: log numbers and documents

After the deadline, all applications — paper and online — go into a computer system that assigns each one a random log number, HPD says. Lotteries receive many applications, and it can take time to process them. You may hear back sooner if you receive a low log number or if you meet one or more of the preferences listed on the advertisement. If you have a high log number, you are less likely to hear back, the guidebook says.

Keep checking your Housing Connect Dashboard for the status of every application you have submitted. If your application is selected, you will be asked to upload documents such as personal identification and pay stubs, and to complete a credit check or provide proof of rental history. If there are problems with your documentation, you may get a rejection notice that also explains how to appeal, the guidebook says.

If you are not selected, HPD's advice is to keep looking: new lotteries are posted regularly.

Where to get help

• NYC Housing Connect: housingconnect.nyc.gov
• HPD application guides, including translations: nyc.gov Housing Connect Application Guides
• Call 311, or 212-NEW-YORK (212-639-9675), for help, 311 says.
• HPD's applicant hotline is 212-863-7990. The Housing Connect FAQ on HPD's site says to leave a voicemail; the team is temporarily unable to answer calls in real time and will call back.
• HPD also lists recorded information lines in several languages on the application-guides page, including English (212-863-5610) and Spanish (212-863-5620).
• To report a technical problem with the site, 311 says to email nychousingconnect@hpd.nyc.gov.

This page is an evergreen guide. We will update it in place when official rules change. For listings that close this week, see our Nov. 10 roundup and the live closing-this-week list.