Housing Assistance for Single Mothers in Michigan

Where to start in Michigan

Choose the path that matches the problem you have now. Rent aid, shelter, vouchers, public housing, legal help, and homebuyer programs use different offices and applications.

For the fastest next step, have your ZIP code, household size, move or court date, and the amount you owe ready when you call. Ask if family shelter, a HARA assessment, and legal help are available. Each office checks its own rules.

For a wider list of state programs, use ASMOM’s Michigan help guide. It covers several types of support, not just housing.

Quick housing help table

Current program status

These statewide pages were checked October 12, 2026. An agency may close a list or run out of local funds later. Confirm the county, property and intake method before applying.

State Emergency Relief for housing costs

Michigan’s State Emergency Relief program, or SER, may pay certain emergency costs that threaten health or safety. It has separate rules for relocation, energy, homeownership bills and urgent home repairs. It is not an open-ended monthly rent grant. Only MDHHS can decide a household’s eligibility.

The official relocation rules cover eligible rent, past-due rent, deposits and moving expenses. Qualifying situations may include homelessness; a court summons or judgment that will make the family homeless; leaving abuse; a recent fire or natural disaster; condemned or unsafe housing; or housing needed to prevent a child’s foster-care placement or allow a child to return home. Some cases require a decision by MDHHS staff. A fire or disaster-related stay with others has a 60-day application condition on the state page.

Apply online through MI Bridges. If you do not have reliable internet or need help using the system, a local MDHHS office or MI Bridges community partner may help you apply. A paper SER application is also available from MDHHS.

SER rules that can change your plan

• Affordability: For relocation aid, the state says total housing costs must be no more than 75% of the family’s net income. Ask MDHHS how the state counts your income and housing costs.
• Past payments: The state asks applicants to show good cause for unpaid shelter costs during the past six months. Keep records of a job loss, illness, safety problem or other cause. Let MDHHS decide what qualifies.
• Maximum payments: The posted relocation service limits are $410 for one person; $520 for two; $620 for three; $740 for four; $870 for five; and $1,040 for six or more. These are caps, not promised payments; ask which costs they apply to.
• Income and assets: Different SER services have different tests and may require a payment from the household. Read the state’s eligibility rules and check your individual case with MDHHS.

What to include

Send every document MDHHS asks for by its stated deadline. Useful proof may include your lease, rent ledger, court or shutoff notice, moving quote, repair estimate, income, bank records, and amount due to the landlord or provider. Keep a receipt or screenshot for each upload.

If food costs are making rent harder to cover, apply for Michigan’s Food Assistance Program (SNAP/FAP) through MI Bridges. It uses a separate eligibility decision. Check current limits with MDHHS before relying on any older benefits chart.

Emergency shelter and HARA help

Michigan has a Housing Assessment and Resource Agency in every community. A HARA worker gathers information, checks your housing need, and connects you to services that may fit. This may include shelter, diversion, homeless prevention, rapid rehousing, or another local referral.

Use the official HARA county list to find the agency serving your area. Call before traveling because intake hours and local procedures can change.

County detail: The HARA contact list separates Detroit, Highland Park and Hamtramck from much of the rest of Wayne County. Use your city and ZIP code, not just “Wayne County,” when you choose an intake office. Ask how a family with children can get after-hours help if the office is closed.

Tell the worker if children are with you, you are pregnant, someone has a disability, you are sleeping outside or in a car, or you are leaving violence. This helps the worker choose the right screening but does not promise an opening.

Community Action Agencies may also help with rent referrals, heat, weatherization, or local emergencies. Ask your county HARA or 2-1-1 which agency is funded for your need. An agency may require a referral and may have a waitlist.

Section 8 and voucher updates

The Housing Choice Voucher program, often called Section 8, helps eligible households rent in the private market. MSHDA serves all 83 counties through its voucher program, which explains current rules.

As checked October 12, 2026, the official MSHDA waitlist page states that no tenant-based HCV lists are open. It also states that its homeless waiting lists are closed. This describes MSHDA lists, not every local public housing agency in Michigan.

When a tenant-based list opens, MSHDA accepts one online application for an open county. A local living-or-working preference may apply. Follow the current page if you need a disability accommodation.

Project-based voucher lists

A project-based voucher stays with a specific property, not the tenant. MSHDA’s published openings include Orchard Manor (Genesee; February 6, 2026), Kingsbury Place (Kent; March 24), Corner at Wall St (Berrien; July 1), and 206 North Washington (Washtenaw; July 16). It now also lists Lee Plaza I and II (Wayne; August 5) and Lee Plaza II (Oakland; September 8). These dates tell you when lists opened, not whether they still accept applicants.

Use MSHDA’s project-based property list to get the assigned lead agency. You cannot apply through the normal online tenant voucher form. Ask if intake is open, who is eligible, how referrals work, and which documents to bring. Some properties serve people who meet certain homelessness, disability, age, or other program criteria; a place on a list is not a promise of housing.

ASMOM’s Section 8 guide explains vouchers, waitlists, inspections, and common scams in plain language.

Affordable rentals and public housing

Some lower-cost properties have income or rent rules even when you do not have a portable voucher.

Search Michigan’s affordable rental directory by county, city, ZIP code, property, or program. Call the property before paying a fee or making plans. The directory itself warns users to confirm the information with the property contact.

If the rental search is not loading, use MSHDA’s rental resources page to reach the directory and other housing search tools. A listed building may have no vacant unit, and not every reduced-rent unit is based on your income.

Ask whether the list is open, which income and bedroom rules apply, what fees are due, and whether the property accepts vouchers. Keep a call and follow-up list.

Local public housing agencies may run public housing, local vouchers, or property waiting lists separate from MSHDA. Use HUD’s public housing locator to find agencies serving your area. Each agency controls its own list and application rules.

Utility help that protects housing

Unpaid heat, electric, water, or fuel bills can make a home unsafe or lead to added debt. SER may cover some energy emergencies. The Michigan Energy Assistance Program and utility-company protections may also help eligible households.

The Michigan Public Service Commission’s utility help page explains state and utility programs, payment plans, and shutoff protections. It says you do not always need to wait for a shutoff notice before asking for help.

Michigan’s energy programs have different rules. SER is based on an emergency and its own eligibility test. MEAP may offer payment help and coaching for eligible customers. For a water bill, ask the local water provider and 2-1-1 about current city or county options; do not assume an electricity program pays water bills.

Call your utility as soon as you know you cannot pay. Ask about payment plans, shutoff protection, and the energy-assistance provider serving your area. Save the confirmation number and terms.

ASMOM’s Michigan utility guide covers heat, electricity, water, and billing problems. Ask the provider which funds are taking applications now.

Eviction, discrimination, and safety

This is general information, not legal advice. Read court papers right away. Rent-aid applications do not automatically stop a hearing or eviction.

Michigan Legal Help housing has plain-language information about eviction, rent, repairs, security deposits, subsidized housing, foreclosure, and legal-help screening. Bring your lease, notices, court papers, payment records, repair requests, and messages when asking for help.

If you received a summons or eviction complaint, check the hearing date today. Ask a legal aid office about free representation or help filling in court papers. Tell them if you applied for SER and keep your application number. Even if you make a deal with a landlord, ask legal aid or the court how that affects your case before missing a hearing.

Detroit Right to Counsel

Detroit renters with an eviction case in 36th District Court may qualify for free legal help through the Office of Eviction Defense. The city says tenants should attend the hearing and ask to speak with a Right to Counsel lawyer. Income rules apply.

Housing discrimination

If you believe a landlord, seller, lender, or housing provider treated you unlawfully because of a protected trait, contact the Michigan fair housing office. Keep ads, messages, emails, names, dates, and application records when it is safe to do so.

Michigan’s fair housing guidance lists protections tied to family status, including children and pregnancy, along with other protected traits. Ask the state civil rights office or legal aid how to report a concern. Filing windows and possible defenses depend on the facts.

Housing tied to abuse

If housing trouble is connected to domestic violence, stalking, sexual assault, or trafficking, a trained advocate can discuss shelter and local support without making decisions for you. ASMOM’s Michigan safety guide provides a careful starting point.

Help for homeowners and buyers

Urgent home repairs

State Emergency Relief may help correct unsafe conditions or restore essential services for an eligible homeowner. The SER repair page lists examples such as a nonworking furnace, water heater, or septic system. Apply through MI Bridges and wait for program direction before starting work when possible.

State repair aid covers repairs needed to remove a direct health or safety hazard, not upgrades. MDHHS says it normally requires an eligible owner or purchaser, a permanent home, and a home the family can afford to maintain. Ask before hiring a contractor: work begun before authorization may not be paid.

Very-low-income rural homeowners may check USDA’s Michigan repair program. Loans may help with repairs. Grants are limited to eligible homeowners age 62 or older.

Mortgage, taxes and lot rent

If you may lose a home you own, MDHHS has Home Ownership Services within SER. It may help with certain mortgage or land-contract payments, property taxes, required insurance, or mobile-home lot rent. The state lists a $2,000 lifetime cap and rules about why past payments were missed. This is different from relocation aid and is not ongoing mortgage support. Apply through MI Bridges and talk to your lender or housing counselor as well.

Buying a home

The MI Home Loan works through participating lenders. It is available to qualifying first-time buyers statewide and repeat buyers in targeted areas. Income, credit, purchase price, education, property, and lender rules apply.

MSHDA currently lists a minimum credit score of 640 and a statewide home purchase price limit of $566,355, effective June 1, 2026, for MI Home Loan. Other limits also apply. A participating lender must check the property, income, loan type, and your full application.

The active MI 10K DPA can provide up to $10,000 for down payment, closing costs, and prepaid expenses when paired with an eligible MI Home Loan. It is an interest-free deferred loan with no monthly payments, not a cash grant. Repayment can be due after sale, refinance, first-mortgage payoff, or when the home is no longer owner occupied.

MSHDA’s separate First-Generation DPA program is closed because its funds were exhausted. Do not pay a person or website that claims it can still submit an application. ASMOM’s Michigan homebuyer guide explains current purchase options in more detail.

Documents to gather

Start a folder with paper copies or secure digital photos. For each application, keep documents that show your household, income, rent or mortgage, notice or deadline, and how much help you need. Send the exact proof each office requests.

What to do if help is denied or delayed

Read the notice and find the exact reason. A denial may be based on income, missing proof, an unpaid required contribution, a cost the program does not cover, a closed waitlist, a missed deadline, or another rule.

• Ask for the decision and appeal or review instructions in writing.
• Send missing documents through the method named by the agency.
• Keep proof of every upload, fax, mailing, and phone call.
• Ask whether another local fund covers the same need.
• Contact legal aid quickly when a housing or court deadline is involved.

An SER case, an MSHDA or local housing agency list, and an eviction court case have different rules. A notice should tell you how to ask for review or a hearing. Do not assume an agency appeal delays a court date. Ask legal aid if you cannot tell which deadline applies.