For authorities
This page is the setup order. Everything else in Housing hangs off an authority with at least one program and one linked property.
The authority
A housing authority is its own record in Housing, separate from any CivicPort community. It owns the programs, the requirement packages, the waitlist and every household file. Its admins are authority staff who sign in with their CivicPort account.
Properties
An authority has properties, and a property has units. A property does not have to use CivicPort at all, but a property that does is linked to exactly one CivicPort community.
Linking takes an admin who is both an authority admin and a CivicPort admin of that community, because the link is what lets Housing send that community's onboarding invites later. Someone who administers only one side cannot make it.
Once linked, admitting a household to a unit creates their CivicPort account from that community.
Programs
A program is a set of rent rules. Every application, waitlist position and recertification belongs to one program, and each program has its own requirement packages.
| Program | Rent rule | Deductions and adjustments |
|---|---|---|
| Federal public housing | HUD rules: 30% of adjusted income, with 10% of gross income as the floor, subject to the minimum rent. A flat rent option is available | $480 per dependent; $525 for an elderly or disabled family; medical and disability assistance expenses above 10% of income for elderly or disabled families; minimum rent set between $0 and $50 |
| Connecticut state moderate rental | The greater of 30% of adjusted income or the project base rent | Dependents' earnings excluded; medical expenses above 3% of income; child care; court-ordered support paid |
Which candidate rents the worksheet computes, and which one wins, is shown per household on the rent worksheet.
Settings that change each year
The deduction amounts are settings rather than fixed numbers because HUD indexes them yearly. Update them when HUD publishes new figures; a recertification uses the values in force when its worksheet is calculated.
| Setting | Program | Example value |
|---|---|---|
| Dependent deduction | Federal public housing | $480 |
| Elderly or disabled family deduction | Federal public housing | $525 |
| Medical and disability assistance threshold | Federal public housing | 10% of income |
| Minimum rent | Federal public housing | $0 to $50 |
| Medical expense threshold | Connecticut state moderate rental | 3% of income |
| Project base rent | Connecticut state moderate rental | Per property |
| Helpers may sign | Authority | Whether a helper can be given the "fill and sign" scope. See Helpers |
Then build the packages
With programs in place, build the requirement packages each one asks applicants and residents to complete. Nothing can be applied for until a program has a published application package.