WomensLaw serves and supports all survivors, no matter their sex or gender.

Hotline

Housing issues / eviction

Laws current as of August 4, 2023

HUD and VAWA

I am so sorry that you are having a hard time with your housing situation. Subsidized housing issues can be very frustrating to deal with.

There are protections in place for victims of domestic violence who live in or want to live in federal public or Section 8 housing. These protections from things like eviction are part of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). You can find out more about what rights you might have to get access to public housing and against eviction, as a victim of domestic violence, on HUD’s new VAWA resource page. We also have some information about VAWA housing protections on our website, and another place to find information about housing rights for victims of domestic violence is the National Homelessness Law Center’s website.

If a survivor believes their VAWA rights were violated, one way to get help could be to file a complaint with the government’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO). This guide explains how to make a VAWA complaint to the government office. 

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