How much will Section 8 pay for rent in Lee County?

Up to the housing authority's payment standard, which it sets between 90% and 110% of FMR. For a two-bedroom that's $837 to $1,023. 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 Lee County?

HUD publishes a second set of numbers, Small Area FMRs, for individual ZIP codes. In Lee those run from $930 to $1,400 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 Lee 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 Illinois figures are loaded.

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

Fair Market Rent in Lee County, Illinois (FY 2027)

HUD's FY 2027 Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom in Lee County is $930 a month. That's the number the housing authority starts from when it sets Section 8 payment standards here.

Two-bedroom FMR

$930

+1.5% from FY 2026

Payment standard

$837–$1,023

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

Income to afford

$37,200

a year, with rent at 30% of income

Rank in Illinois

83rd of 102

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	$648	$583–$713	$25,920	$12.46/hr	+2.5%
1 bedroom	$785	$707–$864	$31,400	$15.10/hr	-3.1%
2 bedroom	$930	$837–$1,023	$37,200	$17.88/hr	+1.5%
3 bedroom	$1,288	$1,159–$1,417	$51,520	$24.77/hr	+1.1%
4 bedroom	$1,387	$1,248–$1,526	$55,480	$26.67/hr	-0.6%

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	$1,595	$1,436–$1,755
6 bedroom Estimate	$1,803	$1,623–$1,983
7 bedroom Estimate	$2,011	$1,810–$2,212
8 bedroom Estimate	$2,219	$1,997–$2,441

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

Market check

HUD's number is one input. What does a two-bedroom in Lee actually rent for?

Search any address in Lee 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 Lee somewhere between $837 and $1,023. 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.

$930 a month is affordable, by HUD's 30% rule, on an income of roughly $37,200 a year. Put another way, $18 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%$837	Voucher pays at 100%$930	Voucher pays at 110%$1,023
$2,500	$750	$87	$180	$273
$4,000	$1,200	$0	$0	$0

Run your own numbers in the Section 8 rent calculator

Rate history

The two-bedroom rate went up 2% from FY 2026 ($916) to FY 2027 ($930). Since FY 2020 it's up 27% in total, about 3.5% a year. The Illinois median moved up 1% over the same year.

Fiscal year	Studio	1 BR	2 BR	3 BR	4 BR	2BR change
FY 2020	$477	$556	$732	$912	$1,048	—
FY 2021	$490	$556	$720	$920	$1,045	-1.6%
FY 2022	$503	$594	$735	$995	$1,067	+2.1%
FY 2023	$531	$650	$774	$1,100	$1,145	+5.3%
FY 2024	$553	$710	$807	$1,137	$1,188	+4.3%
FY 2025	$605	$786	$883	$1,237	$1,319	+9.4%
FY 2026	$632	$810	$916	$1,274	$1,395	+3.7%
FY 2027In effect	$648	$785	$930	$1,288	$1,387	+1.5%

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 2027 that's October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. In Lee, that runs from $648 for a studio up to $1,387 for four bedrooms, all five rates in the table above.

Because Lee sits outside any HUD metro area, its rate is a county-wide figure built from local rents. One number covers every address in the county, Lee included.

Among Illinois's 102 counties, Lee ranks 83rd for two-bedroom FMR. That's about 3% below the state median of $958 and about 13% below the national median county at $1,063. About 33,869 people live here, 42nd in the state.

Rates by ZIP code

Zoom in and the picture changes. HUD's Small Area FMRs put a two-bedroom at $930 in 61042 (Harmon) and $1,400 in 60553 (Steward), with the 14 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
60530	Lee	$1,330	+43.0%
60553	Steward	$1,400	+50.5%
61006	Ashton	$1,010	+8.6%
61021	Dixon	$1,010	+8.6%
61031	Franklin Grove	$1,010	+8.6%
61042	Harmon	$930	0.0%
61057	Nachusa	$930	0.0%
61310	Amboy	$940	+1.1%
61318	Compton	$1,140	+22.6%
61324	Eldena	$930	0.0%
61331	Lee Center	$930	0.0%
61353	Paw Paw	$1,240	+33.3%
61367	Sublette	$1,000	+7.5%
61378	West Brooklyn	$1,230	+32.3%

Nearby counties

Two-bedroom FMR, with how each compares to Lee.

Ogle County

20 mi · 51,495 people

$1,080

+16%

Bureau County

27 mi · 32,866 people

$981

+5%

DeKalb County

27 mi · 100,703 people

$1,481

+59%

Whiteside County

34 mi · 54,947 people

$945

+2%

La Salle County

35 mi · 108,714 people

$1,052

+13%

Putnam County

38 mi · 5,601 people

$942

+1%

Winnebago County

39 mi · 283,292 people

$1,172

+26%

Carroll County

40 mi · 15,576 people

$930

same rate

Questions people ask

$930 a month for FY 2027, which runs October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. The other rates are $648 for a studio, $785 for one bedroom, $1,288 for three and $1,387 for four.

Tools for this county

All Illinois 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