Payment standards and your share of the rent

The payment standard is the housing authority’s rent figure for a voucher. It is not the rent the landlord asks for, and it is not the amount you pay.

This is not legal advice and not a decision by a housing authority. Applying for a voucher is free.

The authority sets the payment standard

Under 24 CFR 982.503, the authority adopts a payment standard schedule. For a typical area, that figure is between 90 percent and 110 percent of the Fair Market Rent, or of the Small Area Fair Market Rent where HUD requires small-area rents. HUD can approve a number outside that band. The authority can also set a different standard for a reasonable accommodation.

The rent lookup on this site shows HUD’s Fair Market Rent or Small Area Fair Market Rent. It is not your authority’s payment standard. Ask the authority for the schedule it is using this year.

What you pay

The family share is calculated from income, under 24 CFR 982.515. A common result is about 30 percent of adjusted monthly income. Adjusted income is annual income minus the deductions in 24 CFR 5.611, which include deductions the authority applies for dependents, disability, medical costs, and child care. This site cannot compute adjusted income, because it does not have those facts or the current deduction amounts.

If the unit’s gross rent is above the payment standard, the family pays the difference on top of the income-based share. At the start of a lease, the family generally cannot pay more than 40 percent of adjusted monthly income. The authority does that math at the briefing and when you submit a unit.

Where this comes from

24 CFR 982.503, payment standard amounts.
24 CFR 982.515, the family share.
24 CFR 5.611, adjusted income.