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

Up to the housing authority's payment standard, which it sets between 90% and 110% of FMR. For a two-bedroom that's $2,704 to $3,304. 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.

Does Norfolk County have its own Fair Market Rent?

No. It uses the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy metro rate, shared with 3 other counties. HUD sets one FMR for the whole metro area, so Norfolk gets the same $3,004 two-bedroom figure as Middlesex County.

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

HUD publishes a second set of numbers, Small Area FMRs, for individual ZIP codes. In Norfolk those run from $2,650 to $4,420 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 Norfolk 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 Massachusetts figures are loaded.

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

Fair Market Rent in Norfolk County, Massachusetts (FY 2027)

A two-bedroom in Norfolk County carries a FY 2027 Fair Market Rent of $3,004 a month, effective October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. Everything Section 8 pays in Norfolk keys off that figure.

Two-bedroom FMR

$3,004

+2.3% from FY 2026

Payment standard

$2,704–$3,304

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

Income to afford

$120,160

a year, with rent at 30% of income

Rank in Massachusetts

3rd of 14

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	$2,435	$2,192–$2,679	$97,400	$46.83/hr	+3.4%
1 bedroom	$2,514	$2,263–$2,765	$100,560	$48.35/hr	+1.7%
2 bedroom	$3,004	$2,704–$3,304	$120,160	$57.77/hr	+2.3%
3 bedroom	$3,580	$3,222–$3,938	$143,200	$68.85/hr	+1.6%
4 bedroom	$3,948	$3,553–$4,343	$157,920	$75.92/hr	+1.5%

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	$4,540	$4,086–$4,994
6 bedroom Estimate	$5,132	$4,619–$5,645
7 bedroom Estimate	$5,725	$5,153–$6,298
8 bedroom Estimate	$6,317	$5,685–$6,949

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

Rates by town

Massachusetts publishes Fair Market Rents town by town instead of by county. The 28 towns in Norfolk County don't all get the same number. Two-bedroom rates run from $2,409 to $3,008 depending on the town, so the headline figure above is a population-weighted average and the town table is the one to use.

Town	Population	Studio	1 BR	2 BR	3 BR	4 BR
Quincy cityHighest	102,114	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Brookline town	63,266	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Weymouth Town city	58,505	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Braintree Town city	38,899	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Randolph city	34,878	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Franklin Town city	33,154	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Needham town	32,459	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Norwood town	31,542	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Wellesley town	30,347	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Stoughton town	29,225	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Milton town	28,587	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Walpole town	26,388	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Dedham town	25,237	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Canton town	24,748	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Foxborough town	18,615	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Sharon town	18,574	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Bellingham town	17,410	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Westwood town	16,318	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Medway town	13,436	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Medfield town	13,068	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Wrentham town	12,297	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Norfolk town	11,673	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Holbrook town	11,380	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Plainville town	9,943	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Millis town	8,888	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Cohasset town	8,427	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Dover town	5,930	$2,440	$2,518	$3,008	$3,584	$3,953
Avon townLowest	4,774	$1,678	$1,842	$2,409	$3,015	$3,166

Market check

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

Search any address in Norfolk for a rent estimate built from nearby comps, with the HUD figure right next to it.

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 Norfolk somewhere between $2,704 and $3,304. 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.

$3,004 a month is affordable, by HUD's 30% rule, on an income of roughly $120,160 a year. Put another way, $58 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%$2,704	Voucher pays at 100%$3,004	Voucher pays at 110%$3,304
$2,500	$750	$1,954	$2,254	$2,554
$4,000	$1,200	$1,504	$1,804	$2,104

Run your own numbers in the Section 8 rent calculator

Rate history

The two-bedroom rate went up 2% from FY 2026 ($2,937) to FY 2027 ($3,004). Since FY 2020 it's up 30% in total, about 3.8% a year. The Massachusetts median held flat over the same year.

Fiscal year	Studio	1 BR	2 BR	3 BR	4 BR	2BR change
FY 2020	$1,711	$1,895	$2,306	$2,874	$3,125	—
FY 2021	$1,737	$1,919	$2,331	$2,900	$3,162	+1.1%
FY 2022	$1,799	$1,982	$2,395	$2,961	$3,248	+2.7%
FY 2023	$2,020	$2,193	$2,630	$3,202	$3,535	+9.8%
FY 2024	$2,207	$2,371	$2,821	$3,412	$3,759	+7.3%
FY 2025	$2,259	$2,389	$2,833	$3,413	$3,756	+0.4%
FY 2026	$2,354	$2,471	$2,937	$3,522	$3,889	+3.7%
FY 2027In effect	$2,435	$2,514	$3,004	$3,580	$3,948	+2.3%

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 Norfolk, that runs from $2,435 for a studio up to $3,948 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 Norfolk in with 3 other counties in the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy metro, Middlesex County, Essex County, Suffolk County among them, and every one of them gets $3,004 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 Massachusetts's 14 counties, Norfolk ranks 3rd for two-bedroom FMR. That's about 32% above the state median of $2,273 and about 183% above the national median county at $1,063. About 730,082 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 $2,650 in 02019 (Bellingham) and $4,420 in 02446 (Brookline), with the 44 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
02019	Bellingham	$2,650	-11.8%
02021	Canton	$3,200	+6.5%
02025	Cohasset	$3,800	+26.5%
02026	Dedham	$2,900	-3.5%
02027	Dedham	$2,960	-1.5%
02030	Dover	$3,320	+10.5%
02032	East Walpole	$3,130	+4.2%
02035	Foxboro	$2,650	-11.8%
02038	Franklin	$2,650	-11.8%
02052	Medfield	$2,650	-11.8%
02053	Medway	$2,650	-11.8%
02054	Millis	$2,650	-11.8%
02056	Norfolk	$2,650	-11.8%
02062	Norwood	$2,980	-0.8%
02067	Sharon	$3,430	+14.2%
02070	Sheldonville	$2,960	-1.5%
02071	South Walpole	$2,730	-9.1%
02072	Stoughton	$2,830	-5.8%
02081	Walpole	$2,810	-6.5%
02090	Westwood	$3,370	+12.2%
02093	Wrentham	$2,650	-11.8%
02169	Quincy	$3,070	+2.2%
02170	Quincy	$2,650	-11.8%
02171	Quincy	$3,170	+5.5%
02184	Braintree	$2,860	-4.8%
02185	Braintree	$2,960	-1.5%
02186	Milton	$2,650	-11.8%
02187	Milton Village	$3,004County rate	—
02188	Weymouth	$2,750	-8.5%
02189	East Weymouth	$2,650	-11.8%
02190	South Weymouth	$2,680	-10.8%
02191	North Weymouth	$2,650	-11.8%
02269	Quincy	$2,960	-1.5%
02322	Avon	$2,650	-11.8%
02343	Holbrook	$2,650	-11.8%
02368	Randolph	$2,930	-2.5%
02445	Brookline	$3,860	+28.5%
02446	Brookline	$4,420	+47.1%
02447	Brookline Village	$2,960	-1.5%
02457	Babson Park	$4,010	+33.5%

Counties sharing the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy metro rate

HUD sets one rate for the whole metro, so every county here carries the same $3,004 two-bedroom figure as Norfolk.

Middlesex County

1,638,365 people

$2,884

Essex County

813,054 people

$2,761

Suffolk County

785,121 people

$3,008

Nearby counties

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

Suffolk County

11 mi · 785,121 people

$3,008

same rate

Middlesex County

19 mi · 1,638,365 people

$2,884

-4%

Plymouth County

22 mi · 535,075 people

$2,713

-10%

Bristol County

28 mi · 582,270 people

$1,928

-36%

Essex County

32 mi · 813,054 people

$2,761

-8%

Worcester County

36 mi · 867,788 people

$2,057

-32%

Barnstable County

56 mi · 231,668 people

$2,488

-17%

Dukes County

60 mi · 20,933 people

$2,010

-33%

Questions people ask

$3,004 a month for FY 2027, which runs October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. The other rates are $2,435 for a studio, $2,514 for one bedroom, $3,580 for three and $3,948 for four.

Tools for this county

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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