CA · Section 8 / HCV

Public Housing Authority records in California

HUD PIH directory records for 96 Public Housing Authorities in California, with reported HCV unit counts and contact details. A zero-unit record does not establish an active voucher program or waitlist.

96
PHAs in state
369,815
Authorized HCV units
3%
of all U.S. PHAs
23,299
Total HUD units

Need to narrow the directory first? Search and filter all California PHA records in the Finder. The Finder keeps the same HUD directory records while letting you set a reported-unit threshold; it does not show current availability or waitlists.

PHAs in California by HUD size band

Exclusive HUD PIH section8_size bands across all 96 agencies in this state, not a restatement of the top-12 chart below.

The largest voucher programs in California

Public Housing Authorities ranked by authorized Housing Choice Vouchers

vouchers
Source HUD PIH Public Housing Authority directory (FY2025) As of 2025
96 PHAs · 369,815 Section 8 units

According to HUD PIH's FY2025 PHA directory, California is #1 of 51 states and DC by authorized HCV (369,815 units) at PHA-count rank 20 (96 authorities) ≠ Texas #1 by PHA headcount (379 authorities) at HCV rank 3.

  • 3% of all U.S. PHAs
  • #20 of 51 PHA count
  • #1 of 51 authorized HCV
  • Cross-referenced with HUD FY2026 Payment Standards

What HUD's PIH Record for California Tells You

California sits mid-pack in HUD's PIH directory: #20 of 51 states and DC by PHA headcount, with 96 records (3% of the 3,780 U.S. total) reporting 369,815 authorized Section 8 / HCV units combined. Across all HUD programs (public housing, HCV, and related subsidy streams) those same records report 23,299 total units. 8 of these records (8%) report zero authorized HCV units; that source field does not establish an active voucher program, a waitlist, or an application route.

Payment standards inside CA metros are set at 90–110% of HUD FY2026 Fair Market Rent, cross-referenced in our payment standards directory, so voucher value is metro-specific even within the same state. A city, county, regional, or statewide authority may share the state; the directory does not determine service-area eligibility, waitlist status, or whether an agency is accepting applications, use the source contact details to verify a specific agency's current programs. See the waitlist guide for general federal-program context and the portability guide for federal move rules.

PHAs in California

Sorted by reported authorized HCV units, highest first. Many regions carry multiple PHA records (a city PHA, a county PHA, and sometimes a regional authority) - check the source contact details before relying on any single record for a current program, service area, or waitlist.

#Public Housing AuthorityCitySection 8 unitsTotal units
1Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles-53,4286,302
2Los Angeles County Development Authority-27,0582,962
3San Diego Housing Commission-16,368189
4Housing Authority of the City & County of SF-16,212534
5Oakland Housing Authority-14,4261,644
6County of Sacramento Housing Authority-13,790645
7Santa Clara County Housing Authority-12,6064
8Housing Authority of the County of San Diego-12,507121
9Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino-11,8811
10Orange County Housing Authority-11,6860
11Housing Authority of the County of Riverside-10,2670
12Housing Authority of the County Contra Costa-9,811969
13City of Long Beach Housing Authority-7,8620
14Housing Authority City of Fresno-7,532669
15Housing Authority of the County of Alameda-7,1240
16City of Anaheim Housing Authority-6,8350
17Housing Authority of the City of San Jose-6,7910
18Housing Authority of Fresno County-5,845470
19Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz-5,6740
20Housing Auth. of the County of San Joaquin-5,380911
21Housing Authority of the County of San Mateo-5,2680
22Stanislaus Regional Housing Authority-5,094647
23Housing Authority of the County of Monterey-4,8520
24Housing Authority of the County of Kern-4,524231

Showing the top 24 of 96 HUD PHA records in California, ordered by reported authorized HCV units. A zero-unit record does not establish an active program or waitlist.

Browse all California PHA records in the filterable finder →

Checking current program information in California

Contact the agency directly to confirm current availability. These guides cover the general federal process:

Nationwide states with similar PHA count or voucher inventory

Two cross-state peer sets for California, outside the alphabetically adjacent states below.

Similar PHA headcount

Nearest states by agency count (96 PHAs in CA).

Similar authorized HCV units

Nearest states by summed Section 8 inventory (369,815 units in CA).

Higher-rent HUD FMR areas in California

These are the highest published FY2026 two-bedroom Fair Market Rents among HUD areas with a PlainVoucher detail page. They are reference amounts, not a local PHA payment-standard promise.

Browse every published payment-standard area →

HUD FMR and local market-rent context in California

Most of California's HUD FMR areas price above the local market: of 25 tracked areas, 23 (92%) published two-bedroom FMR amounts sat at least 10% above the 2019–2023 ACS two-bedroom median gross rent, versus 0 below it and 2 inside HUD's 95–110% reference band.

This is an area-level comparison of HUD FY2026 FMR and Census ACS rent data. It is not an individual PHA payment-standard, availability, eligibility, or waitlist result. Explore the metro comparisons →

Five-year HUD FMR change in California

HUD FMR rose strongly across California's 51 tracked areas: the median published two-bedroom rent climbed 36.3%, from $1,192 in FY2021 to $1,625 in FY2026.

This is a historical HUD reference-rent trend across FMR areas, not a forecast or an individual PHA payment-standard, rent, availability, eligibility, or waitlist result. Check HUD's current FMR documentation →

Nearby states

Portability lets a household move a voucher across state lines. California's 3 bordering states in our directory:

Compare states and PHAs side by side →

Source: HUD PIH Open Data (FY25). Payment standards: HUD USER FY2026 FMR. The PHA directory source was consolidated in April 2026. PlainVoucher is not affiliated with HUD, the State of California, or any local PHA. Verify with HUD →. See our methodology for how we compile this directory.

Disclaimer. This is general information about Section 8 / HCV administration in California. Waitlist status, eligibility, and local preferences are set by each PHA and change frequently. Always contact the specific PHA directly.

What to do with California's desk

California has 96 HUD PIH directory PHAs in this corpus - use the dual PHA-count vs authorized-HCV read before treating any single agency as the whole state.

State aggregates are directory facts from HUD PIH Open Data. Waitlist status, eligibility, and local preferences are set by each PHA and change frequently.

Read our methodology , how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Source and method. PlainVoucher compiles public HUD and U.S. Census release data into a searchable reference. Release periods and source boundaries are identified on each data surface; PlainVoucher does not determine eligibility, waitlist status, payment standards, or local PHA rules. Read our editorial standards and corrections policy, methodology, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-09-02.