Fair Market Rent by ZIP Code (2025)

Fair Market Rent (FMR) is HUD's benchmark for what a modest, standard-quality rental costs in a given area. HUD calculates FMR for six unit sizes — efficiency (0BR) through 4-bedroom — at three geography levels: metro area, non-metro county, and, in roughly 100 higher-cost metros, the individual ZIP code (called Small Area FMR, or SAFMR). The figure represents the 40th percentile of gross rent (rent plus utilities) paid by recent movers in that area, which is why it tracks the lower-middle of the local rental market rather than the median or average asking rent you'd see on a listing site.

HUD builds each year's FMR from a base-year estimate — mostly Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) gross-rent data — then rolls it forward with a recent-mover rent-trend factor to approximate current-year conditions, applying local survey adjustments in metros where that data is available. New FMRs are published every fall ahead of the federal fiscal year that starts October 1, so this hub and every county/ZIP page linked from it update on that same annual cycle — no separate refresh needed on our end when a new fiscal year drops.

FMR is published separately for six bedroom counts — studio through 4-bedroom — with each size typically 10-20% higher than the one below it. Small Area FMR applies at the ZIP code level in roughly 100 designated metro areas, mostly larger, pricier metros where a single metro-wide figure would badly under- or over-price different neighborhoods. Where SAFMR is in effect, a voucher's payment standard can vary block to block within the same city, which is why the ZIP-level lookup above — not just the county page — matters if you operate in one of those metros.

For fiscal year 2026, averaging each state's highest-cost county, the 2BR FMR comes to $1,934 a month, up from $1,882 in FY2025— a proxy for the top end of what HUD is currently pricing nationally, not a straight national average. Actual FMRs range from under $700 in some rural counties to well over $3,000 in high-cost coastal metros, so the county and ZIP pages below break it down by specific market.

Public Housing Agencies (PHAs) use FMR as the anchor for Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher payment standards, which they can set between 90% and 110% of FMR (up to 120% with HUD approval in exception areas). A voucher holder pays the gap between actual rent and their agency's payment standard, so FMR effectively caps how much of a unit's rent a voucher will cover. If you accept vouchers, checking a property's FMR before setting an asking rent tells you roughly what the local PHA will approve without back-and-forth.

If a unit's actual rent is at or below FMR, a Section 8 tenant's share is typically capped at 30% of adjusted income and the voucher covers the rest up to the payment standard; if it's above FMR, the tenant makes up the difference themselves, assuming the PHA approves the higher rent as reasonable. Comparing a listing's rent against the FMR for its county or ZIP — both linked below — is the fastest way to gut-check whether a unit is a realistic fit for a voucher holder before you show it.

FMR isn't the same as the market's average asking rent — see Average Rent by County for median gross rent from Census ACS, a broader read on the local market. FMR specifically targets the lower-middle of the rental distribution because its job is to set a voucher subsidy ceiling, not describe typical asking prices. HUD income limits, the other half of Section 8 eligibility, are on the Income Limits by County hub.