HUD Fair Market Rent · FY 2026 · effective Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026
Fair Market Rent in Ciales Municipio, Puerto Rico (FY 2026)
HUD's FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom in Ciales Municipio is $493 a month. That's the number the housing authority starts from when it sets Section 8 payment standards here.
2 bedroom FMR
$493
FY 2026, utilities included
Payment standard range
$444 to $542
90% to 110% of FMR
Income to afford 2BR
$19,720
per year, at 30% of income
Rank in Puerto Rico
63rd of 78
by 2BR FMR
HUD has already published FY 2027. On October 1, 2026 the two-bedroom rate in Ciales moves to $521. That's up 6%. The full FY 2027 table is in the history section below.
HUD's number is one input. What does a two-bedroom in Ciales actually rent for?
Search any address in Ciales 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 | $429 | $386 to $472 | $17,160 | $8.25/hr | +0.2% |
| 1 bedroom | $433 | $390 to $476 | $17,320 | $8.33/hr | +1.2% |
| 2 bedroom | $493 | $444 to $542 | $19,720 | $9.48/hr | 0.0% |
| 3 bedroom | $621 | $559 to $683 | $24,840 | $11.94/hr | +3.7% |
| 4 bedroom | $704 | $634 to $774 | $28,160 | $13.54/hr | +0.4% |
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 | $810 | $729 to $891 |
| 6 bedroom Estimate | $915 | $824 to $1,007 |
| 7 bedroom Estimate | $1,021 | $919 to $1,123 |
| 8 bedroom Estimate | $1,126 | $1,013 to $1,239 |
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 Ciales, that runs from $429 for a studio up to $704 for four bedrooms, all five rates in the table above.
This is a metro rate. The municipio doesn't get one of its own. HUD lumps Ciales in with 3 other municipios in the Barranquitas-Aibonito metro, Barranquitas Municipio, Aibonito Municipio, Orocovis Municipio among them, and every one of them gets $493 for a two-bedroom. Where you are inside the metro doesn't change the municipio number. It does change the ZIP number, covered below.
Among Puerto Rico's 78 counties, Ciales ranks 63rd for two-bedroom FMR. That's about 13% below the state median of $564 and about 52% below the national median county at $1,018. About 16,924 people live here, 65th in the state.
Counties sharing the Barranquitas-Aibonito metro 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 Ciales somewhere between $444 and $542. 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.
$493 a month is affordable, by HUD's 30% rule, on an income of roughly $19,720 a year. Put another way, $9 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% ($444) | HAP at 100% ($493) | HAP at 110% ($542) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,500 | $750 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| $4,000 | $1,200 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Rate history
The two-bedroom rate didn't move from FY 2025 to FY 2026. It was $493 then and it's $493 now. Since FY 2020 it's up 21% in total, about 3.2% a year. The Puerto Rico median moved down 2% over the same year.
| Year | Studio | 1 BR | 2 BR | 3 BR | 4 BR | 2BR change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY 2020 | $327 | $359 | $409 | $520 | $554 | — |
| FY 2021 | $337 | $369 | $421 | $524 | $573 | +2.9% |
| FY 2022 | $360 | $390 | $444 | $549 | $605 | +5.5% |
| FY 2023 | $399 | $423 | $478 | $644 | $784 | +7.7% |
| FY 2024 | $450 | $458 | $526 | $636 | $732 | +10.0% |
| FY 2025 | $428 | $428 | $493 | $599 | $701 | -6.3% |
| FY 2026 | $429 | $433 | $493 | $621 | $704 | 0.0% |
| FY 2027 | $450 | $467 | $521 | $681 | $726 | +5.7% |
Questions people ask
$493 a month for FY 2026, which runs October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. The other rates are $429 for a studio, $433 for one bedroom, $621 for three and $704 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 Ciales actually go for?
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