If you live in a THA property:
To move out of a Tacoma Housing Authority property, contact your Property Manager. You’ll need to fill out our Intent to Vacate form and give notice of lease termination and intent to vacate, signed by your head of household, spouse, or co-head.
Make sure you turn in your written notice at least 20 days before month’s end in order to avoid owing rent for the following month. See your office staff if you have any questions about your lease, rental agreement, or the move-out process.
If you have a THA Rental Assistance voucher:
If your family receives rental assistance through our Housing Choice Voucher program, you can take your voucher with you when you move and use it to help pay the rent on your next home or apartment. If eligible, you can even take the voucher to another state.
Moving within THA’s jurisdiction
If you would like to relocate within THA’s service area, please fill out our Intent-to-Move form and contact your housing specialist to start the process.
Moving into THA’s jurisdiction
Transferring your voucher from one agency’s jurisdiction to another is called porting. To port into THA’s coverage area, you must first work with your current voucher provider to see if you are eligible and have them send the required documents to THA.
Once we have the required documents, a housing specialist will reach out to you within 10 business days and send out a packet for you to complete and return to THA with any requested documents.
Moving out of THA’s jurisdiction
You can only port your voucher out of THA’s coverage area if you meet certain eligibility requirements, which vary depending upon the type of assistance you have from THA.
We will consider a request to port out of THA’s service area if:
- A member of your household has an approved reasonable accommodation to port out of THA’s jurisdiction.
- A household member has a situation that is approved under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).
- A household member has employment for at least 20 hours per week at a location 35 or more miles outside the Tacoma city limits.
- A household member is enrolled at least part-time at a college or university more than 35 miles from the Tacoma city limits.
- Your household ported in from another housing authority and THA has not absorbed the voucher.
- The housing authority in your household’s destination area is willing to absorb your voucher.
You must have lived in THA’s jurisdiction for at least one year before you become eligible to port, unless you have a reasonable accommodation or a situation protected under VAWA.
You also need to be in good standing with THA’s program requirements: not in violation of any THA participant obligations and not under review for termination of assistance.
To start the port out process, please complete the port request form and intent to move form and submit both documents to our office. If you’re not sure if you are eligible, please contact your Housing Specialist.
For more information, see our Frequently Asked Questions on moving with rental assistance: