What Happens If You Fail a Section 8 Inspection?

Failing an HQS inspection isn't the end of the world, but it does create problems that compound the longer you wait to address them. Whether you're a landlord trying to get a new tenant into your unit or an existing tenant whose annual inspection just went sideways, here's what actually happens and what you can do about it.

Initial Inspections (Before Move-In)

If a voucher holder wants to rent your apartment and the unit fails its first inspection, the move-in process stops. No HAP contract gets signed, no payments start, and the tenant can't officially move in using their voucher.

The inspector leaves a report listing every item that failed. You'll typically get 30 days to make repairs for standard issues and 24 hours for emergencies like gas leaks or no heat. After you've made the repairs, you contact the housing authority to schedule a re-inspection.

Here's where it gets complicated: the tenant is waiting, and their voucher has an expiration date. Most vouchers give tenants 120 days to find housing, sometimes with extensions available. Every week you spend fixing things is a week closer to their deadline, and if you take too long they might have to move on to another apartment just to use their voucher before it expires.

I've seen landlords lose tenants this way. The inspection fails on something fixable, the landlord takes their time getting around to it, and the tenant finds another place because they can't afford to wait. If you actually want the tenant, move fast on repairs.

Most housing authorities give you two re-inspection attempts. If you fail both, the tenant has to find another unit and you've wasted everyone's time, including your own.

Annual Inspections (Existing Tenants)

Annual inspections work differently because there's already a HAP contract in place and a tenant living in the unit. The stakes are higher in some ways and lower in others.

If the unit fails an annual inspection, you'll get a list of what needs to be fixed and a deadline (usually 30 days for standard issues, 24 hours for emergencies). If you fix everything in time and pass the re-inspection, nothing changes. Payments continue, tenant stays, everyone moves on.

If you don't fix the issues in time, the housing authority will abate your payments. Abatement means they stop paying the subsidy portion of the rent while the tenant remains responsible for their portion (usually around 30% of their income). You lose the government payment until you pass inspection.

This is where landlords sometimes get themselves in trouble. The tenant is still living there, you're not getting paid, and the issues still need to be fixed. Some landlords try to evict the tenant at this point, but you can't evict someone just because the housing authority stopped paying you for your own failure to maintain the unit. The tenant didn't cause the failed inspection (unless it's a tenant-caused issue, which is a separate situation covered below).

The abatement continues until you make the repairs and pass a re-inspection. Then payments resume, but you don't get back pay for the abatement period. That money is gone.

What Counts as a Failed Item?

HQS inspections have a binary pass/fail structure. Either an item meets the Housing Quality Standards or it doesn't. There's no partial credit and no grading on a curve.

Common fail items include:

• Missing or non-working smoke detectors on every level (hardwired or 10-year sealed battery required)
• Missing or non-working carbon monoxide detectors where gas appliances are present
• Peeling or chipping paint anywhere inside or outside the unit
• Broken or missing locks on exterior doors
• Windows that don't open, close, lock, or stay open on their own
• Electrical issues like missing outlet covers or non-working outlets
• No hot water or inadequate water pressure
• No heat or inadequate heat during heating season
• Active water leaks or water damage
• Handrails missing or loose on stairs with four or more steps
• GFCI outlets missing near water sources in kitchens and bathrooms

Some of these are quick fixes. A missing outlet cover takes 30 seconds and costs a dollar. Peeling paint takes longer but isn't complicated. Others, like electrical problems or heating system failures, might need a licensed professional.

For a complete breakdown of what inspectors look at in each room, see our Section 8 Inspection Checklist.

Who's Responsible for What?

Most failed items fall on the landlord. The unit needs to be maintained to HQS standards, and that's the property owner's responsibility under both the HAP contract and NYC housing code.

But some things fall on the tenant. If the smoke detector batteries are dead because the tenant removed them, that's tenant-caused. If the unit has a pest problem because the tenant isn't maintaining basic cleanliness, that's tenant-caused. If the tenant refuses to let the inspector in, that's on them too.

When a failure is tenant-caused, the housing authority notifies the tenant that they need to fix it. If they don't, their voucher can be terminated. This protects landlords from being penalized for things outside their control.

In practice, the line between landlord and tenant responsibility isn't always clear, and inspectors have some discretion in how they categorize issues. If the smoke detector is dead and it's the kind where the landlord is supposed to provide batteries, that might be on you. If it's clearly the tenant's responsibility under the lease, it's on them. When in doubt, just fix it. Arguing about who should have replaced a $3 battery while your HAP payments are abated is not a productive use of anyone's time.

Emergency Failures

Some failed items are classified as emergencies because they pose immediate health or safety risks. According to NYCHA's inspection guidelines, these include:

• Gas leaks or gas odor
• No heat when outside temperature requires it
• No running water
• Major plumbing leaks or sewage backup
• Exposed electrical wiring
• Broken locks on exterior doors
• Fire damage
• No working toilet

For emergencies, you have 24 hours to fix the problem. Not 24 business hours, not "by tomorrow," but 24 hours from when you're notified. If you don't fix it in time, the housing authority can take action immediately, including abating payments and potentially terminating the HAP contract.

If you get hit with an emergency failure, drop everything and address it. Call a plumber at night if you have to. The cost of an emergency repair is almost always less than the cost of losing the tenant or having your payments stopped indefinitely.

Can You Lose the Tenant Over This?

If you repeatedly fail inspections or refuse to make repairs, yes. The housing authority can terminate the HAP contract, which means the tenant would need to find a new unit to continue using their voucher.

More commonly, the tenant chooses to leave. If they're living in a unit that keeps failing inspections and the landlord isn't responsive, they're allowed to request a transfer to another apartment. They don't have to stay and deal with a property owner who won't maintain the unit, and given how difficult it can be to find voucher-friendly housing in NYC, a tenant with a working relationship with an unresponsive landlord has every incentive to look elsewhere.

From the tenant's perspective, failed inspections are stressful. They didn't cause the problem, but they're the ones living with whatever's broken, and they're worried about losing their housing if the landlord doesn't cooperate. If you're a landlord who responds quickly and fixes things, you'll keep your tenants longer. If you drag your feet, don't be surprised when they leave.

How to Avoid Failing in the First Place

The best approach to a failed inspection is to not fail in the first place. Walk through your unit before the scheduled inspection with a checklist in hand. Test the smoke detectors, check the outlets, look for peeling paint, make sure all the windows open and close and lock properly.

Most of what fails inspections is minor stuff that you can fix in an afternoon if you catch it early. The landlords who fail are usually the ones who assumed the unit was fine and didn't bother to check beforehand. A 30-minute walkthrough the week before would have caught everything, but they skipped it, and now the tenant is waiting while repairs happen.

We built a Pre-Inspection Checklist tool that walks through everything the inspector looks at, organized by room. Use it before your inspection and you'll catch the problems before the inspector does.

If you're new to Section 8 and want to understand the full process before your first inspection, our guide on how to become a Section 8 landlord in NYC covers everything from signing up to getting your first HAP payment.

The Bottom Line

If you fail an initial inspection, fix the issues quickly or you might lose the tenant to another landlord who can pass inspection faster. If you fail an annual inspection, fix the issues within the deadline or your payments get abated until you do. Either way, the solution is the same: make the repairs and schedule a re-inspection as soon as you're ready.

Failed inspections aren't catastrophic, but they're also not something to ignore or procrastinate on. The faster you respond, the less it costs you in lost rent and lost tenants.

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