HUD Fair Market Rent · FY 2026 · Effective Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026
Fair Market Rent in Ascension Parish, Louisiana (FY 2026)
HUD's FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom in Ascension Parish is $1,204 a month. That's the number the housing authority starts from when it sets Section 8 payment standards here.
Two-bedroom FMR
$1,204
-1.5% from FY 2025
Payment standard
$1,084–$1,324
90% to 110% of the FMR, two-bedroom
Income to afford
$48,160
a year, with rent at 30% of income
Rank in Louisiana
10th of 64
by two-bedroom FMR, highest first
HUD has already published FY 2027. On October 1, 2026 the two-bedroom rate in Ascension moves to $1,149. That's down 5%. 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 | $1,032 | $929–$1,135 | $41,280 | $19.85/hr | -2.9% |
| 1 bedroom | $1,064 | $958–$1,170 | $42,560 | $20.46/hr | -1.6% |
| 2 bedroom | $1,204 | $1,084–$1,324 | $48,160 | $23.15/hr | -1.5% |
| 3 bedroom | $1,511 | $1,360–$1,662 | $60,440 | $29.06/hr | -1.1% |
| 4 bedroom | $1,943 | $1,749–$2,137 | $77,720 | $37.37/hr | -4.0% |
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 | $2,234 | $2,011–$2,457 |
| 6 bedroom Estimate | $2,526 | $2,273–$2,779 |
| 7 bedroom Estimate | $2,817 | $2,535–$3,099 |
| 8 bedroom Estimate | $3,109 | $2,798–$3,420 |
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 Ascension actually rent for?
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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 Ascension somewhere between $1,084 and $1,324. 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.
$1,204 a month is affordable, by HUD's 30% rule, on an income of roughly $48,160 a year. Put another way, $23 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%$1,084 | Voucher pays at 100%$1,204 | Voucher pays at 110%$1,324 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,500 | $750 | $334 | $454 | $574 |
| $4,000 | $1,200 | $0 | $4 | $124 |
Rate history
The two-bedroom rate went down 1% from FY 2025 ($1,222) to FY 2026 ($1,204). Since FY 2020 it's up 35% in total, about 5.1% a year. The Louisiana median moved down 4% over the same year.
| Fiscal year | Studio | 1 BR | 2 BR | 3 BR | 4 BR | 2BR change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY 2020 | $678 | $765 | $894 | $1,145 | $1,429 | — |
| FY 2021 | $794 | $856 | $1,013 | $1,290 | $1,583 | +13.3% |
| FY 2022 | $744 | $781 | $917 | $1,161 | $1,447 | -9.5% |
| FY 2023 | $859 | $876 | $1,005 | $1,266 | $1,644 | +9.6% |
| FY 2024 | $1,107 | $1,124 | $1,277 | $1,598 | $2,125 | +27.1% |
| FY 2025 | $1,063 | $1,081 | $1,222 | $1,528 | $2,023 | -4.3% |
| FY 2026In effect | $1,032 | $1,064 | $1,204 | $1,511 | $1,943 | -1.5% |
| FY 2027From Oct 1, 2026 | $992 | $1,014 | $1,149 | $1,456 | $1,842 | -4.6% |
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 Ascension, that runs from $1,032 for a studio up to $1,943 for four bedrooms, all five rates in the table above.
This is a metro rate. The parish doesn't get one of its own. HUD lumps Ascension in with 7 other parishes in the Baton Rouge metro, East Baton Rouge Parish, Livingston Parish, West Baton Rouge Parish among them, and every one of them gets $1,204 for a two-bedroom. Where you are inside the metro doesn't change the parish number. It does change the ZIP number, covered below.
Among Louisiana's 64 counties, Ascension ranks 10th for two-bedroom FMR. That's about 27% above the state median of $946 and about 18% above the national median county at $1,018. About 126,973 people live here, 13th in the state.
Rates by ZIP code
Zoom in and the picture changes. HUD's Small Area FMRs put a two-bedroom at $1,100 in 70346 (Donaldsonville) and $1,550 in 70737 (Gonzales), with the 9 ZIP codes in between. Housing authorities in HUD-designated metros use those ZIP rates instead of the parish rate. Everywhere else the ZIP numbers show where rents actually sit, and the parish rate stays the official standard.
| ZIP | City | 2BR rate | vs county |
|---|---|---|---|
| 70346 | Donaldsonville | $1,100 | -8.6% |
| 70707 | Gonzales | $1,204County rate | — |
| 70718 | Brittany | $1,370 | +13.8% |
| 70725 | Darrow | $1,100 | -8.6% |
| 70728 | Duplessis | $1,370 | +13.8% |
| 70734 | Geismar | $1,400 | +16.3% |
| 70737 | Gonzales | $1,550 | +28.7% |
| 70738 | Burnside | $1,204County rate | — |
| 70769 | Prairieville | $1,360 | +13.0% |
| 70774 | Saint Amant | $1,200 | -0.3% |
| 70778 | Sorrento | $1,200 | -0.3% |
Counties sharing the Baton Rouge metro rate
HUD sets one rate for the whole metro, so every county here carries the same $1,204 two-bedroom figure as Ascension.
Nearby counties
Two-bedroom FMR, with how each compares to Ascension.
St. James Parish
16 mi · 20,090 people
$921
-24%
Assumption Parish
19 mi · 21,067 people
$967
-20%
Livingston Parish
19 mi · 143,425 people
$1,204
same rate
East Baton Rouge Parish
22 mi · 454,369 people
$1,204
same rate
Iberville Parish
22 mi · 30,210 people
$866
-28%
St. John the Baptist Parish
24 mi · 41,986 people
$1,331
+11%
West Baton Rouge Parish
28 mi · 27,377 people
$1,204
same rate
St. Charles Parish
37 mi · 52,191 people
$1,331
+11%
Questions people ask
$1,204 a month for FY 2026, which runs October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. The other rates are $1,032 for a studio, $1,064 for one bedroom, $1,511 for three and $1,943 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 Ascension actually go for?
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