HUD fair market rent: how it sets Section 8 rent limits

HUD, the federal housing department, publishes a fair market rent (FMR) for each area: its yearly estimate of what a modest rental costs, by bedroom count. A housing authority sets its Section 8 payment standard at 90 to 110 percent of it, the most a voucher pays toward rent and utilities. It does not cap what landlords charge.

What is fair market rent?

A fair market rent is HUD's estimate of the 40th percentile rent in an area. That is the amount below which 40 percent of local rentals fall. HUD builds it from what people who recently moved into standard-quality homes pay, and it counts rent plus utilities, so it is a "gross rent" (federal rule, 24 CFR 888.113, where CFR means the Code of Federal Regulations).

HUD publishes one figure for each size, from a studio (0 bedrooms) to 4 bedrooms. A metropolitan area gets one FMR that applies to every county in it. Counties outside metro areas get their own, and in New England HUD works by town.

The figures follow HUD's fiscal year, which starts October 1. HUD's notice for fiscal year 2027 says the new rents take effect October 1, 2026. Where a housing authority asked HUD to recheck its area's rents, the older ones can stay in use during the review, and HUD posts that list on its fair market rent page.

What does fair market rent do, and what does it not do?

It has one main job: it anchors the voucher payment standard.

• The payment standard. A housing authority picks a payment standard for each bedroom size, anywhere from 90 to 110 percent of the FMR (24 CFR 982.503). It can ask for a higher one in some cases.
• The subsidy. The payment standard is the most a voucher pays each month. The voucher covers the lower of two amounts: the payment standard minus your share, or the home's rent plus utilities minus your share (24 CFR 982.505).
• Other uses. HUD also uses FMRs to set public housing flat rents and some rent ceilings for other federal programs.

It does not do these things:

• It is not a rent cap. Landlords are not bound by it. On a voucher home, the housing authority must find the rent reasonable compared with similar homes without a subsidy (24 CFR 982.507). HUD says "The payment standard is not a rent limit," and that if you pick a pricier home you pay the difference.
• It is not your rent. HUD says your share is usually 30 percent of your adjusted monthly income, and it can be as high as 40 percent. It is also not an income limit. Those come from area median income, explained in what area median income means.

What are small area fair market rents by ZIP code?

A metro-wide FMR is one number for a whole region. A Small Area Fair Market Rent (SAFMR) is an FMR worked out for a single ZIP code, so a costly neighborhood and a cheaper one in the same metro get different figures. A ZIP code's two-bedroom figure cannot be more than 150 percent of its metro's.

HUD requires housing authorities in certain metro areas to use them for voucher payment standards. HUD's page says 65 metro areas are covered today. Authorities elsewhere may opt in. So a "fair market rent by ZIP code" exists only as a small area rent. If your authority does not use them, one metro or county figure applies in every ZIP code.

How do you look up a fair market rent?

1. Open HUD USER's fair market rents page and choose the 2027 tab.
2. Find your state and county or metro area. HUD's PDF schedule lists every area state by state, and the county-level spreadsheet has the same rows.
3. Read the column for the bedroom size you need. A two-bedroom is the usual benchmark.
4. For a ZIP code, use HUD's small area page. Its spreadsheet gives each ZIP code's rent, with columns for 90 and 110 percent of it.
5. Ask your housing authority for its payment standard for your bedroom size, and whether it uses small area rents. That number, not the FMR, decides what a voucher pays.

A worked example: the Washington, D.C. area

HUD's Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area covers D.C., Arlington and Fairfax in Virginia, and several Maryland counties. Its two-bedroom FMR rose from $2,246 for fiscal year 2026 to $2,438 for fiscal year 2027. HUD's notice names this metro among those that must use small area rents, so for Arlington, the ZIP code figure is what counts:

Now a made-up household: adjusted income of $3,000 a month, so a share of about $900. Say the authority sets its 22206 payment standard at exactly the ZIP code's $3,190, which is one choice within its range, not a rule.

• A home costing $2,800 with utilities: the voucher pays $1,900 ($2,800 minus $900). The family pays $900.
• A home costing $3,400: the voucher pays $2,290 ($3,190 minus $900). The family pays $1,110, which is 37 percent of income.

How do rents in the listings we track compare?

As of October 5, 2026, 57 of the open rentals we track name exactly two bedrooms and post a rent. Five HUD areas have at least four each, and the table shows three of them (the Nassau-Suffolk area in New York and the Lowell area in Massachusetts are left out). Here is the lowest rent each listing posts, against the two-bedroom FMR for the area:

Read this with care. Our listings are income-restricted homes, so their rents follow an income rule (16 of the 21 Boston-area ones list 80 percent of area median income as a limit), not the market. Posted rents may leave out utilities, which the FMR includes. And we left out the four Greater Boston listings that HUD places in its Lowell area. The table shows income-restricted rents usually sit under the FMR but not always: one Boston home, set at 100 percent of area median income, lists above it. It does not tell you whether a rent is fair, and FMRs can fall, as San Jose's did.

What to do next

If you hold or want a voucher, ask the authority for its payment standard, then search homes at or under it. Our open waitlists page shows lists we track, and the guide to finding an open Section 8 waitlist explains how to apply. To see which homes fit your income, try the qualify check or browse open listings, including those in Virginia, the Boston area and the Bay Area. For the income rules, read how to qualify for affordable housing.