HUD Fair Market Rent · FY 2026 · effective Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026
Fair Market Rent in St. Joseph County, Indiana (FY 2026)
HUD's FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom in St. Joseph County is $1,292 a month. That's the number the housing authority starts from when it sets Section 8 payment standards here.
2 bedroom FMR
$1,292
FY 2026, utilities included
Payment standard range
$1,163 to $1,421
90% to 110% of FMR
Income to afford 2BR
$51,680
per year, at 30% of income
Rank in Indiana
16th of 92
by 2BR FMR
HUD has already published FY 2027. On October 1, 2026 the two-bedroom rate in St. Joseph moves to $1,276. That's down 1%. The full FY 2027 table is in the history section below.
HUD's number is one input. What does a two-bedroom in St. Joseph actually rent for?
Search any address in St. Joseph for a rent estimate built from nearby comps, with the HUD figure right next to it.
FY 2026 Fair Market Rents
| Bedrooms | FMR | Payment standard | Income needed | Hourly wage | vs FY 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | $898 | $808 to $988 | $35,920 | $17.27/hr | +19.6% |
| 1 bedroom | $1,105 | $995 to $1,216 | $44,200 | $21.25/hr | +18.1% |
| 2 bedroom | $1,292 | $1,163 to $1,421 | $51,680 | $24.85/hr | +18.0% |
| 3 bedroom | $1,567 | $1,410 to $1,724 | $62,680 | $30.13/hr | +16.1% |
| 4 bedroom | $1,711 | $1,540 to $1,882 | $68,440 | $32.90/hr | +17.8% |
5 to 8 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 | $1,968 | $1,771 to $2,165 |
| 6 bedroom Estimate | $2,224 | $2,002 to $2,446 |
| 7 bedroom Estimate | $2,481 | $2,233 to $2,729 |
| 8 bedroom Estimate | $2,738 | $2,464 to $3,012 |
Source: HUD Office of Policy Development and Research, FY 2026 Fair Market Rents. Rents include utilities. huduser.gov
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 St. Joseph, that runs from $898 for a studio up to $1,711 for four bedrooms, all five rates in the table above.
St. Joseph is its own HUD metro area (South Bend-Mishawaka, IN), so the rate here is set from rents inside the county rather than a wider region.
Among Indiana's 92 counties, St. Joseph ranks 16th for two-bedroom FMR. That's about 28% above the state median of $1,009 and about 27% above the national median county at $1,018. About 272,388 people live here, 5th in the state.
Rates by ZIP code
Zoom in and the picture changes. HUD's Small Area FMRs put a two-bedroom at $1,000 in 46595 (Wyatt) and $1,860 in 46530 (Granger), with the 25 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 46530 | Granger | $1,860 | +44.0% |
| 46536 | Lakeville | $1,140 | -11.8% |
| 46544 | Mishawaka | $1,270 | -1.7% |
| 46545 | Mishawaka | $1,330 | +2.9% |
| 46546 | Mishawaka | $1,290 | -0.2% |
| 46552 | New Carlisle | $1,160 | -10.2% |
| 46554 | North Liberty | $1,060 | -18.0% |
| 46556 | Notre Dame | $1,520 | +17.6% |
| 46561 | Osceola | $1,390 | +7.6% |
| 46574 | Walkerton | $1,040 | -19.5% |
| 46595 | Wyatt | $1,000 | -22.6% |
| 46601 | South Bend | $1,060 | -18.0% |
| 46613 | South Bend | $1,280 | -0.9% |
| 46614 | South Bend | $1,110 | -14.1% |
| 46615 | South Bend | $1,190 | -7.9% |
| 46616 | South Bend | $1,300 | +0.6% |
| 46617 | South Bend | $1,780 | +37.8% |
| 46619 | South Bend | $1,190 | -7.9% |
| 46624 | South Bend | $1,290 | -0.2% |
| 46626 | South Bend | $1,292County rate | — |
| 46628 | South Bend | $1,310 | +1.4% |
| 46634 | South Bend | $1,290 | -0.2% |
| 46635 | South Bend | $1,200 | -7.1% |
| 46637 | South Bend | $1,440 | +11.5% |
| 46660 | South Bend | $1,290 | -0.2% |
| 46680 | South Bend | $1,290 | -0.2% |
| 46699 | South Bend | $1,292County rate | — |
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 St. Joseph somewhere between $1,163 and $1,421. 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.
$1,292 a month is affordable, by HUD's 30% rule, on an income of roughly $51,680 a year. Put another way, $25 an hour full time.
Worked example for a two-bedroom, assuming the rent equals the payment standard. Tenant pays 30% of monthly income, HUD's housing assistance payment covers the rest.
| Monthly household income | Tenant pays (30%) | HAP at 90% ($1,163) | HAP at 100% ($1,292) | HAP at 110% ($1,421) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,500 | $750 | $413 | $542 | $671 |
| $4,000 | $1,200 | $0 | $92 | $221 |
Rate history
The two-bedroom rate went up 18% from FY 2025 ($1,095) to FY 2026 ($1,292). Since FY 2020 it's up 54% in total, about 7.4% a year. The Indiana median moved up 2% over the same year.
| Year | Studio | 1 BR | 2 BR | 3 BR | 4 BR | 2BR change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY 2020 | $598 | $687 | $840 | $1,082 | $1,138 | — |
| FY 2021 | $616 | $706 | $851 | $1,100 | $1,154 | +1.3% |
| FY 2022 | $708 | $823 | $981 | $1,252 | $1,330 | +15.3% |
| FY 2023 | $755 | $923 | $1,099 | $1,397 | $1,476 | +12.0% |
| FY 2024 | $689 | $862 | $1,017 | $1,267 | $1,354 | -7.5% |
| FY 2025 | $751 | $936 | $1,095 | $1,350 | $1,452 | +7.7% |
| FY 2026 | $898 | $1,105 | $1,292 | $1,567 | $1,711 | +18.0% |
| FY 2027 | $937 | $1,093 | $1,276 | $1,545 | $1,677 | -1.2% |
Nearby counties
Elkhart County
$1,18319 mi · pop 206,841
Marshall County
$1,00822 mi · pop 46,208
LaPorte County
$1,15227 mi · pop 112,215
Starke County
$95633 mi · pop 23,308
Kosciusko County
$1,14234 mi · pop 80,442
Fulton County
$96242 mi · pop 20,420
LaGrange County
$97745 mi · pop 40,364
Porter County
$1,31745 mi · pop 173,355
Questions people ask
$1,292 a month for FY 2026, which runs October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. The other rates are $898 for a studio, $1,105 for one bedroom, $1,567 for three and $1,711 for four.
Tools for this county
Fair Market Rent lookup
Look up any ZIP code's Small Area FMR by bedroom count.
Section 8 rent calculator
Work out the 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
See what income a household needs for a given rent.
What does a rental in St. Joseph actually go for?
HUD's number is one input. Search any address in St. Joseph for a rent estimate built from nearby comps. 3 free searches, no card.
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