How much will Section 8 pay for rent in Santa Clara County?

Up to the housing authority's payment standard, which it sets between 90% and 110% of FMR. For a two-bedroom that's $2,945 to $3,599. The voucher covers the gap between that standard and about 30% of the tenant's income, and it never pays more than the unit would rent for without a voucher.

Why does my ZIP code show a different Fair Market Rent than Santa Clara County?

HUD publishes a second set of numbers, Small Area FMRs, for individual ZIP codes. In Santa Clara those run from $2,290 to $4,480 for a two-bedroom. Housing authorities in metros HUD has designated for Small Area FMRs use the ZIP rate. The rest use the county rate. Your PHA can tell you which one applies.

When do the next Fair Market Rents for Santa Clara County come out?

HUD usually publishes the new fiscal year's rates in late August or September, and they take effect October 1. This page updates as soon as the new California figures are loaded.

HUD Fair Market Rent · FY 2027 · Effective Oct 1, 2026 to Sep 30, 2027

Fair Market Rent in Santa Clara County, California (FY 2027)

A two-bedroom in Santa Clara County carries a FY 2027 Fair Market Rent of $3,272 a month, effective October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. Everything Section 8 pays in Santa Clara keys off that figure.

Two-bedroom FMR

$3,272

-6.1% from FY 2026

Payment standard

$2,945–$3,599

90% to 110% of the FMR, two-bedroom

Income to afford

$130,880

a year, with rent at 30% of income

Rank in California

6th of 58

by two-bedroom FMR, highest first

FY 2027 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 2026
Studio	$2,458	$2,212–$2,704	$98,320	$47.27/hr	-6.2%
1 bedroom	$2,778	$2,500–$3,056	$111,120	$53.42/hr	-6.8%
2 bedroom	$3,272	$2,945–$3,599	$130,880	$62.92/hr	-6.1%
3 bedroom	$4,396	$3,956–$4,836	$175,840	$84.54/hr	-4.5%
4 bedroom	$4,688	$4,219–$5,157	$187,520	$90.15/hr	-6.4%

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	$5,391	$4,852–$5,930
6 bedroom Estimate	$6,094	$5,485–$6,703
7 bedroom Estimate	$6,798	$6,118–$7,478
8 bedroom Estimate	$7,501	$6,751–$8,251

Source: HUD Office of Policy Development and Research, FY 2027 Fair Market Rents. Rents include utilities. huduser.gov

Market check

Two-bedrooms in San Jose are asking $3,093. HUD says $3,272.

That's 5% below the county FMR. Median asking rent across 19 San Jose ZIP codes with active 2BR listings. FMR includes utilities and asking rents usually don't, so the true gap is a little smaller.

San Jose rents by ZIP code Section 8 vs market rent, 65 metros

No card needed

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 Santa Clara somewhere between $2,945 and $3,599. 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.

$3,272 a month is affordable, by HUD's 30% rule, on an income of roughly $130,880 a year. Put another way, $63 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%$2,945	Voucher pays at 100%$3,272	Voucher pays at 110%$3,599
$2,500	$750	$2,195	$2,522	$2,849
$4,000	$1,200	$1,745	$2,072	$2,399

Run your own numbers in the Section 8 rent calculator

Rate history

The two-bedroom rate went down 6% from FY 2026 ($3,483) to FY 2027 ($3,272). Since FY 2020 it's up 10% in total, about 1.4% a year. The California median moved up 2% over the same year.

Fiscal year	Studio	1 BR	2 BR	3 BR	4 BR	2BR change
FY 2020	$2,103	$2,458	$2,970	$3,943	$4,525	—
FY 2021	$2,228	$2,558	$3,051	$3,984	$4,593	+2.7%
FY 2022	$2,145	$2,418	$2,868	$3,687	$4,213	-6.0%
FY 2023	$2,223	$2,513	$2,941	$3,750	$4,202	+2.5%
FY 2024	$2,383	$2,694	$3,132	$4,011	$4,425	+6.5%
FY 2025	$2,608	$2,975	$3,446	$4,477	$4,878	+10.0%
FY 2026	$2,621	$2,982	$3,483	$4,602	$5,010	+1.1%
FY 2027In effect	$2,458	$2,778	$3,272	$4,396	$4,688	-6.1%

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 2027 that's October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. In Santa Clara, that runs from $2,458 for a studio up to $4,688 for four bedrooms, all five rates in the table above.

Santa Clara is its own HUD metro area (San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA), so the rate here is set from rents inside the county rather than a wider region.

Among California's 58 counties, Santa Clara ranks 6th for two-bedroom FMR. That's about 90% above the state median of $1,725 and about 208% above the national median county at $1,063. About 1,902,047 people live here, 6th in the state.

Live asking rents in San Jose

The county FMR next to what landlords are asking in San Jose right now

Rates by ZIP code

Zoom in and the picture changes. HUD's Small Area FMRs put a two-bedroom at $2,290 in 94305 (Stanford) and $4,480 in 95033 (Los Gatos), with the 100 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.

ZIP	City	2BR rate	vs county
94022	Los Altos	$3,990	+21.9%
94023	Los Altos	$3,270	-0.1%
94024	Los Altos	$4,030	+23.2%
94035	Mountain View	$3,270	-0.1%
94039	Mountain View	$3,270	-0.1%
94040	Mountain View	$4,050	+23.8%
94041	Mountain View	$3,710	+13.4%
94042	Mountain View	$3,270	-0.1%
94043	Mountain View	$3,670	+12.2%
94085	Sunnyvale	$4,020	+22.9%
94086	Sunnyvale	$3,610	+10.3%
94087	Sunnyvale	$3,860	+18.0%
94088	Sunnyvale	$3,270	-0.1%
94089	Sunnyvale	$3,770	+15.2%
94301	Palo Alto	$3,650	+11.6%
94302	Palo Alto	$3,270	-0.1%
94304	Palo Alto	$3,880	+18.6%
94305	Stanford	$2,290	-30.0%
94306	Palo Alto	$3,530	+7.9%
94309	Palo Alto	$3,270	-0.1%
95002	Alviso	$2,700	-17.5%
95008	Campbell	$3,310	+1.2%
95009	Campbell	$3,270	-0.1%
95011	Campbell	$3,270	-0.1%
95013	Coyote	$3,110	-5.0%
95014	Cupertino	$4,050	+23.8%
95015	Cupertino	$3,270	-0.1%
95020	Gilroy	$2,630	-19.6%
95021	Gilroy	$3,270	-0.1%
95025	San Jose	$3,272County rate	—
95026	Holy City	$3,270	-0.1%
95030	Los Gatos	$3,330	+1.8%
95031	Los Gatos	$3,270	-0.1%
95032	Los Gatos	$3,630	+10.9%
95033	Los Gatos	$4,480	+36.9%
95035	Milpitas	$3,700	+13.1%
95036	Milpitas	$3,270	-0.1%
95037	Morgan Hill	$2,750	-16.0%
95038	Morgan Hill	$3,270	-0.1%
95042	New Almaden	$3,272County rate	—

Nearby counties

Two-bedroom FMR, with how each compares to Santa Clara.

Santa Cruz County

21 mi · 264,926 people

$4,254

+30%

San Mateo County

27 mi · 742,340 people

$3,697

+13%

Alameda County

33 mi · 1,649,473 people

$2,805

-14%

San Francisco County

42 mi · 830,235 people

$3,697

+13%

Contra Costa County

43 mi · 1,165,012 people

$2,805

-14%

San Benito County

51 mi · 67,290 people

$3,004

-8%

San Joaquin County

56 mi · 797,334 people

$2,015

-38%

Stanislaus County

58 mi · 553,990 people

$1,803

-45%

Questions people ask

$3,272 a month for FY 2027, which runs October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. The other rates are $2,458 for a studio, $2,778 for one bedroom, $4,396 for three and $4,688 for four.

Tools for this county

All California counties All states

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