Subsidized apartments, repair and energy help, and the programs that make staying put affordable.
Kouzr does not run, fund or process any of these programs, and nothing here is legal, benefits or financial advice. Eligibility is decided by the agency that administers the program, and the figures behind every one of them (income limits, funding, waiting lists) change at least annually, so the agency's own page is the only current source. A HUD-approved housing counselor will go through any of it with you at no charge. See also our note on grant scams.
For most older households the real question is not which program to apply to. It is whether to stay in the home or move, and the programs only start making sense once that is decided, because they split neatly along the same line. One set subsidizes a different home. The other set pays to fix the one you have.
The second set is the one people underuse. For an owner on a fixed income, what makes housing unaffordable is rarely the mortgage, which may well be paid off. It is a roof that needs replacing, a cooling system on its last summer, and a power bill that arrives in July. There is money for all three, it is not widely advertised, and using it is usually cheaper than moving.
Staying in the home you have
Repairs, energy costs and accessibility work. Weatherization and LIHEAP both prioritize older households, and neither is a loan.
Federal · Repairs
Section 504 Home Repair loans and grants
USDA Rural Development
Loans to low income owners to repair or modernize a home, and grants to older low income owners specifically to remove health and safety hazards.
Who it is for: Owner-occupants in eligible rural areas under the very low income limit for their county. The grant half is restricted by age; the loan half is not.
In Nevada: Outside the Las Vegas valley, which sits beyond USDA's eligible area, and available across much of rural Nevada.
Free energy efficiency work on the home of a low income household: insulation, sealing, and repairs to the heating and cooling system, done by a state-contracted crew.
Who it is for: Low income owners and renters. Older adults and households with a disabled member are given priority in most states.
The state division that funds home and vehicle modifications, assistive technology, in-home support and the waiver services that pay for accessibility work.
Who it is for: Nevadans with disabilities and older adults, through the division's own programs and through Medicaid waivers it helps administer.
In Nevada: The state office to ask before paying for a ramp, a lift or a bathroom conversion out of pocket.
Section 202 is the housing built specifically for older households. Vouchers are open to everyone under the income limits and commonly carry a preference for elderly applicants.
Federal · Subsidized rental
Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly
HUD Office of Multifamily Housing
Rental housing built and subsidized specifically for very low income older households, with supportive services on site.
Who it is for: Households where at least one member meets the program's age requirement and the income is under the limit for the area. You apply to the property, not to HUD.
HUD, administered by local public housing agencies
A subsidy paid to a private landlord on your behalf, so the household pays a share of its income toward the rent and the agency pays the rest.
Who it is for: Households under the income limits for their area and size, screened by the local agency. Eligibility puts you on a waiting list rather than into a home: the vouchers are capped, and most lists are long or closed.
In Nevada: The Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority runs the program for much of the valley, and opens its lists in announced windows rather than continuously.
The public housing agency for much of the Las Vegas valley: vouchers, public housing, and the tax credit and project-based stock it manages.
Who it is for: Households in its service area. Its waiting lists open in announced windows, and the notices are on its own site rather than anywhere else.
In Nevada: The single most useful page for a Clark County renter, because it is where a list opening is announced and the window is measured in weeks.
The comparison people usually run is the wrong one: the value of the house against the cost of somewhere smaller. What actually decides it is the annual cost of keeping this home habitable against the annual cost of the alternative, and the first of those two numbers is knowable.
Get the roof, the cooling system and the electrical panel assessed, and price the work. Then subtract what the programs above would pay for, which for a low income older owner can be most of it. What remains is the real cost of staying, and it is frequently a fraction of the cost of moving once transaction costs, the move itself and a higher monthly payment somewhere newer are counted.
Two other things belong in that comparison and usually get left out. Any property tax relief you are entitled to as an older owner, which often has to be claimed rather than arriving automatically, and which may have been going unclaimed for years. And accessibility work, which is cheaper than most people assume and is funded by the state disability services office rather than out of pocket. A bathroom that works is often the difference between a home being viable for another decade and not.
Our rent vs buy calculator runs the year-by-year comparison if the alternative is renting, and home equity in Nevada covers what the equity in the house can and cannot do without selling it.
Free advice, and help this month
HUD-approved counseling is free and is also the required independent advice before a reverse mortgage, which makes it the right first call either way.
Federal · Free advice
HUD-approved housing counseling
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Free one-on-one counseling on buying, renting, falling behind on a payment and repairing credit, from an agency HUD has approved and funded to give it.
Who it is for: Anyone. There is no income test to be counseled, and an agency that asks you to pay for the counseling itself is not one of these.
In Nevada: Several approved agencies operate in the Las Vegas valley. The search takes a ZIP code and returns the ones nearest, with what each is approved to advise on.
A referral line and directory covering rent and utility help, food, and emergency housing, staffed locally and answering by phone or online.
Who it is for: Anyone in immediate difficulty, including people who do not qualify for a federal program and need the local charity or county fund instead.
Cooling rather than heating is the Nevada case, and it is the reason the energy programs matter more here than the national framing suggests. A July power bill in the Las Vegas valley is what breaks a fixed income budget, and both LIHEAP and Weatherization treat it as the hazard it is.
The Aging and Disability Services Division is the state office for home modification, assistive technology and in-home support, and is the one to call before paying for accessibility work. The state also keeps an index of homeowner assistance, including foreclosure mediation, which is the route if a payment rather than a repair is the problem.
Nevada has no state income tax, which shapes retirement budgets here, but property tax is real and is administered by the county. Our Las Vegas property tax guide explains how the bill is calculated and appealing your property taxes covers what to do when the assessed value looks wrong.
Older owners with a disability, or a service-connected one, will find more on the disability page and the veterans page: the VA adaptation grants in particular are larger than anything on this page.
Questions people ask
What is Section 202 housing?
Rental housing built and subsidized specifically for very low income older households, with supportive services on site. At least one member of the household has to meet the program's age requirement, and the income has to be under the limit for the area. You apply to the property itself rather than to HUD, and each property keeps its own waiting list.
Is there help with a roof or a furnace on a fixed income?
Yes, from several directions. USDA runs repair loans for low income rural owners and repair grants for older owners specifically, aimed at health and safety hazards. The Weatherization Assistance Program does insulation, sealing and heating and cooling repairs at no cost, and prioritizes older households. LIHEAP covers energy bills and in some cases an emergency system replacement.
Does a reverse mortgage make sense?
That depends on facts no page can see, so here is the mechanism instead. A reverse mortgage converts equity into cash without a monthly payment, and the balance grows over time rather than shrinking. You remain responsible for taxes, insurance and upkeep, and failing to keep those current is the usual way one goes wrong. Independent counseling from a HUD-approved agency is required before you can take one out, which is the right place to get an answer for your own file.
Can I get a mortgage on retirement income?
Yes. Social Security, pension and retirement account withdrawals all count as income for a mortgage, and a lender may not turn you down for being older. Where retirement income is drawn from assets, lenders use a calculation that converts the balance into a qualifying monthly figure, so the account itself can support the application.
Do property tax breaks exist for older owners?
In many places, though the form varies: an exemption, a freeze on assessed value, or a deferral until the home is sold. They are set at state and county level rather than federally, and they generally have to be claimed rather than being applied automatically, so an owner who never filed may have been paying full rate for years.
What is the difference between Section 202 and a voucher?
Section 202 is a subsidized building you apply to and move into. A voucher is a subsidy you carry to a private landlord's home. Older households are eligible for both, they have entirely separate waiting lists, and applying to one does not apply you to the other.