HUD Fair Market Rent · FY 2026 · Effective Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026
Fair Market Rent in Lauderdale County, Alabama (FY 2026)
HUD's FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom in Lauderdale County is $1,000 a month. That's the number the housing authority starts from when it sets Section 8 payment standards here.
Two-bedroom FMR
$1,000
+2.7% from FY 2025
Payment standard
$900–$1,100
90% to 110% of the FMR, two-bedroom
Income to afford
$40,000
a year, with rent at 30% of income
Rank in Alabama
21st of 67
by two-bedroom FMR, highest first
HUD has already published FY 2027. On October 1, 2026 the two-bedroom rate in Lauderdale moves to $1,085. That's up 9%. The full FY 2027 table is in the history section below.
FY 2026 Fair Market Rents
Payment standard is the 90% to 110% band a housing authority can set. Income needed puts rent at 30% of gross income, and the hourly wage assumes a 40-hour week.
| Bedrooms | FMR | Payment standard | Income needed | Hourly wage | vs FY 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | $698 | $628–$768 | $27,920 | $13.42/hr | +3.6% |
| 1 bedroom | $775 | $698–$853 | $31,000 | $14.90/hr | +4.3% |
| 2 bedroom | $1,000 | $900–$1,100 | $40,000 | $19.23/hr | +2.7% |
| 3 bedroom | $1,242 | $1,118–$1,366 | $49,680 | $23.88/hr | +3.8% |
| 4 bedroom | $1,409 | $1,268–$1,550 | $56,360 | $27.10/hr | -0.8% |
Five to eight bedrooms (PropMetrics estimates)
HUD stops at four bedrooms. These add 15% of the four-bedroom rent per extra bedroom. It's our estimate, not a HUD number.
| Bedrooms | Estimated FMR | Payment standard |
|---|---|---|
| 5 bedroom Estimate | $1,620 | $1,458–$1,782 |
| 6 bedroom Estimate | $1,832 | $1,649–$2,015 |
| 7 bedroom Estimate | $2,043 | $1,839–$2,247 |
| 8 bedroom Estimate | $2,254 | $2,029–$2,479 |
Source: HUD Office of Policy Development and Research, FY 2026 Fair Market Rents. Rents include utilities. huduser.gov
Market check
HUD's number is one input. What does a two-bedroom in Lauderdale actually rent for?
Search any address in Lauderdale for a rent estimate built from nearby comps, with the HUD figure right next to it.
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What a voucher pays here
The voucher doesn't pay the FMR itself. It pays the payment standard. Housing authorities set it anywhere from 90% to 110% of FMR, which puts a two-bedroom standard in Lauderdale somewhere between $900 and $1,100. The tenant pays roughly 30% of their income, the voucher covers the rest up to the standard, and the PHA won't approve a rent above what comparable unassisted units get.
$1,000 a month is affordable, by HUD's 30% rule, on an income of roughly $40,000 a year. Put another way, $19 an hour full time.
Worked example for a two-bedroom renting at the payment standard. The tenant pays 30% of monthly income and the voucher covers the rest.
| Monthly household income | Tenant pays (30%) | Voucher pays at 90%$900 | Voucher pays at 100%$1,000 | Voucher pays at 110%$1,100 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,500 | $750 | $150 | $250 | $350 |
| $4,000 | $1,200 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Rate history
The two-bedroom rate went up 3% from FY 2025 ($974) to FY 2026 ($1,000). Since FY 2020 it's up 40% in total, about 5.8% a year. The Alabama median moved up 3% over the same year.
| Fiscal year | Studio | 1 BR | 2 BR | 3 BR | 4 BR | 2BR change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY 2020 | $498 | $565 | $714 | $913 | $1,191 | — |
| FY 2021 | $525 | $580 | $748 | $943 | $1,213 | +4.8% |
| FY 2022 | $525 | $575 | $751 | $935 | $1,173 | +0.4% |
| FY 2023 | $574 | $617 | $811 | $1,000 | $1,249 | +8.0% |
| FY 2024 | $664 | $720 | $940 | $1,157 | $1,425 | +15.9% |
| FY 2025 | $674 | $743 | $974 | $1,196 | $1,421 | +3.6% |
| FY 2026In effect | $698 | $775 | $1,000 | $1,242 | $1,409 | +2.7% |
| FY 2027From Oct 1, 2026 | $760 | $834 | $1,085 | $1,348 | $1,426 | +8.5% |
About this rate
Fair Market Rent is HUD's estimate of what a modest, decent unit rents for in an area, utilities included. It's set once a year and runs October to September. For FY 2026 that's October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. In Lauderdale, that runs from $698 for a studio up to $1,409 for four bedrooms, all five rates in the table above.
This is a metro rate. The county doesn't get one of its own. HUD lumps Lauderdale in with one other county in the Florence-Muscle Shoals metro, Colbert County among them, and every one of them gets $1,000 for a two-bedroom. Where you are inside the metro doesn't change the county number. It does change the ZIP number, covered below.
Among Alabama's 67 counties, Lauderdale ranks 21st for two-bedroom FMR. That's about 14% above the state median of $879 and within a couple percent of the national median county at $1,018. About 94,329 people live here, 15th in the state.
Rates by ZIP code
Zoom in and the picture changes. HUD's Small Area FMRs put a two-bedroom at $880 in 35648 (Lexington) and $1,130 in 35610 (Anderson), with the 10 ZIP codes in between. Housing authorities in HUD-designated metros use those ZIP rates instead of the county rate. Everywhere else the ZIP numbers show where rents actually sit, and the county rate stays the official standard.
Counties sharing the Florence-Muscle Shoals metro rate
HUD sets one rate for the whole metro, so every county here carries the same $1,000 two-bedroom figure as Lauderdale.
Nearby counties
Two-bedroom FMR, with how each compares to Lauderdale.
Colbert County
13 mi · 57,270 people
$1,000
same rate
Lawrence County
27 mi · 33,116 people
$961
-4%
Franklin County
37 mi · 32,011 people
$776
-22%
Limestone County
38 mi · 104,199 people
$1,310
+31%
Morgan County
48 mi · 123,102 people
$961
-4%
Winston County
54 mi · 23,655 people
$776
-22%
Marion County
58 mi · 29,203 people
$776
-22%
Madison County
59 mi · 389,781 people
$1,310
+31%
Questions people ask
$1,000 a month for FY 2026, which runs October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. The other rates are $698 for a studio, $775 for one bedroom, $1,242 for three and $1,409 for four.
Tools for this county
Fair Market Rent lookup
Any ZIP code's Small Area FMR by bedroom count
Section 8 rent calculator
Payment standard and tenant share for a specific rent
What is Fair Market Rent?
How HUD calculates FMR and what it means for landlords
Rent affordability calculator
The income a household needs for a given rent
What does a rental in Lauderdale actually go for?
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