Fraud Policy/Report Program Abuse

The Housing Authority is committed to protecting the integrity of the housing programs that we administer and ensuring that benefits are received only by eligible families and participating owners in accordance with federal regulations. Most recently, the Housing Authority's vigilant fraud detection efforts resulted in the conviction of a former resident who paid $15,000 in restitution for theft related to rental assistance payments.

If you have reason to believe that any fraudulent activity is taking place in connection with any of the agency's housing programs, we ask that you promptly bring the matter to our attention.

What is fraud?

Fraud involves false statements, omissions, or actions made with the intent to deceive or mislead, resulting in funds being misused or program rules violated or circumvented

Examples of owner fraud include:

Offering bribes to Housing Authority employees.
Accepting housing assistance payments for properties that one does not own or represent as the legal agent.
Accepting housing assistance payments for vacant apartments/homes.
Requesting rent payments from tenants in excess of the amount stated in the lease.
Renting to relatives without prior approval from the Housing Authority.

Examples of tenant actions of fraud include:

Not reporting income or total amount of income.
Subletting a subsidized apartment/home.
Having a voucher issued by the Housing Authority and another agency/owner.

How to report housing fraud:

Please be specific regarding the problems you have seen and provide as much information as possible, including the persons you suspect of committing fraud, where they live (if known), and when the alleged incident occurred.

There are three ways to report suspected fraud:

1. Call our Fraud Hotline at 713.260.0724
2. Fax the information to us at 713.260.0828 to the attention of Fraud/Compliance
3. Mail written allegations of fraud to:

Houston Housing Authority
Attn: Fraud/Compliance
2640 Fountainview Drive,
Houston, TX 77057