HOC’s main office is in Kensington. We also have offices in Gaithersburg, Derwood and Silver Spring, as well as many individual property management offices located in our developments across the County.

Kensington – Main Office

10400 Detrick Avenue, Kensington, MD 20895

240.627.9400

The following departments are located in the Kensington Main Office:

• HOC Commission
• President/Executive Director
• Human Resources
• Housing Resources
• Public Affairs
• Government Affairs
• Real Estate Development
• Mortgage Finance
• Information Technology
• Resident Services
• Finance

East Deer Park Office

231 East Deer Park Drive, Gaithersburg, MD 20877

240.627.9400

The East Deer Park office handles property management and maintenance for all scattered site HOC properties, resident services for scattered sites and emergency services for HOC residents living in upper Montgomery County.

Derwood Service Center

16105 Columbus Avenue, Derwood, MD 20855 

240.627.9400

The service center provides walk-in service for clients participating in HOC programs. Staff from Housing Resources and Resident Services are available to assist with routine paperwork and emergency assistance.

Silver Spring Service Center

880 Bonifant Street, Silver Spring, MD 20910

240.627.9400

The service center provides walk-in service for clients participating in HOC programs. Staff from Housing Resources and Resident Services are available to assist with routine paperwork and emergency assistance.

Housing Choice Voucher (HVC) Program

Formerly known as Section 8, the federal HVC program provides rental subsidies to income-eligible households. Applicants receive a voucher that entitles them to rent an apartment in the private marketplace while limiting their rental payment to 30-40 percent of their adjusted income. HOC pays the landlord the remaining portion of the rent. The maximum amounts that HOC can pay are determined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). To apply to this program go to: www.hochousingpath.com.

Section 236 Housing

Residents pay either a basic rent or 30 percent of income, whichever is higher. Because of the basic rent requirement, these properties assist those of moderate income, rather than very low income. HOC manages Bauer Park and Town Center for the elderly and Georgian Court, Stewartown Homes and The Willows for families.

Section 8 New Construction

HUD contracted with some builders to build properties that have HVC (formerly Section 8) subsidies that are attached to the individual units. These are known as “project-based.” HOC owns three such properties: Magruder’s Discovery, Paint Branch, and Shady Grove Apartments.

Opportunity Housing

This is a non-technical term that HOC uses for its broad range of non-federally subsidized housing types owned by HOC and located throughout the County. They may be multifamily developments or scattered sites. Usually, they serve lower or moderate income people, rather than those of very low income. Some of HOC’s multifamily Opportunity Housing developments are Chevy Chase Lake, Fairfax Court, Greenhills, Pooks Hill Tower, Sligo Hills and Tanglewood.

Mixed Income Properties

HOC is a national leader in the development of mixed income housing, a type of Opportunity Housing that includes market rate and affordable units in the same development. The rents for the market rate units, which may include either moderate- or high-end luxury homes, subsidize lower rents for the affordable units.
HOC’s mixed income portfolio includes moderate mixed income developments such as The Barclay, The Glen, The Oaks at Four Corners, Montgomery Arms and Spring Gardens as and high-end, mixed income developments including MetroPointe, Alexander House, The Metropolitan, Pooks Hill Mid-Rise, Strathmore Court, Timberlawn Crescent and Westwood Tower.

Low Income Housing Tax Credit Partnerships

The federal government makes tax credits available to be used to fund affordable housing. Investors, typically local businesses, purchase those tax credits, which can lower their tax burden. By purchasing those tax credits they enter into a partnership with HOC to purchase housing that is rented to moderate income households. HOC manages hundreds of scattered site units that were funded this way, as well as Manchester Manor and Pond Ridge multifamily developments.

Scattered Sites

HOC owns approximately 1,600 individual homes located throughout Montgomery County, which we define as “scattered sites.” Most often, they are townhouses that HOC purchased through the Moderately Priced Dwelling Unit (MPDU) program operated by Montgomery County. The MPDU law requires that any development of over 50 units must include about 12-15 percent moderately priced units. One-third of these are offered for sale to HOC. Over the years, HOC has acquired such units using funding from public housing, the State Partnership Rental Housing Program, Low Income Housing Tax Credits, the McHome program and other sources.

Rent Supplement Program

This is a County-funded program in privately owned rental properties that provides a shallow rental subsidy of $250 to $350 per month to working poor households. The program is administered by the individual properties and monitored by HOC. For more information, call 240.627.9735.

Supportive Housing Program

This program provides subsidized housing, case management and intensive services to 170 previously homeless households in nine different programs funded by Montgomery County and HUD. Seventy-five percent of the units provide permanent housing for adults with disabilities. The remaining 25 percent are transitional units for families who remain in the program for up to two years. Households must be homeless and have been utilizing services through Montgomery County before they are eligible to be referred for the program. For more information, call 240.627.9704.

HOC offers a wide array of programs to support and enrich the lives of our residents, including:

Core Counseling Services

Resident Counselors are assigned to a variety of HOC buildings, including multifamily and scattered sites, elderly and family units, other scattered sites and selected multifamily properties and the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program. Counselors provide crisis intervention, complaint resolution, information and referral and counseling with the goal of helping residents retain their housing, maximize potential and increase self-sufficiency.

Emergency Assistance

HOC staff provide our residents with emergency assistance such as eviction prevention and utility disconnect prevention. For more information call 240.627.9400.

Family Self-Sufficiency Program (FSS)

The FSS program assists families in public housing and the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) programs to achieve self-sufficiency over a five- to seven-year period and to end dependency on all public benefits such as welfare, food stamps, medical assistance and child care subsidies. For more information call 240.627.9781.

Fatherhood Initiative Program

The HOC Fatherhood Initiative Program strengthens families by strengthening fathers. HOC is the first and only public housing authority in the country to receive funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Fatherhood programs. Since 2016, approximately 1,300 fathers have successfully completed the program, gaining education, training and access to employment opportunities, significantly developing their parenting skills and building supportive bonds with other fathers. Click here to learn more.

HOC Academy (HOCA)

The HOCA connects – in one place – all Housing Opportunities Commission (HOC) services/linkages in adult education, workforce development programs, small business development, counseling resources for adults and several enrichment programs for children of all ages. HOCA implements programs that empower our customers to pursue opportunities that help to improve their quality of life and overall self-sufficiency. For more information contact AEWD@hocmc.org.

Services to People with Disabilities

This program has the mission of improving HOC’s service to people with disabilities in a manner that is practical, cost-effective and in compliance with pertinent laws and regulations. For more information, please call 240.627.9705.

Housing Counseling Program

The State-funded Housing Counseling Program assists low-income families or single individuals who are homeless (or in imminent danger of becoming homeless) to locate, secure and maintain permanent housing. Clients must be referred by a case manager from a County service provider and must have either a subsidy or enough income to afford market rate housing. For more information, please call 240.627.9735.

Volunteer Program

The Housing Opportunities Commission enhances its programs through the recruitment and placement of volunteers. The program also seeks donations of resources and services. Please call 240.627.9731 for additional information.

HOC’s success in executing on new construction, renovation, and preservation initiatives are made possible by our ability to provide mortgage financing to HOC’s developments through our role as Montgomery County’s designated Housing Finance Agency. In addition to our own portfolio, HOC is authorized to provide low-interest mortgage financing to private and non-profit developers by issuing tax-exempt bonds. A percentage of these units is set aside for low and moderate-income households. Click here for more information.