HUD Fair Market Rent · FY 2026 · effective Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026
Fair Market Rent in Lares Municipio, Puerto Rico (FY 2026)
HUD's FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom in Lares Municipio is $504 a month. That's the number the housing authority starts from when it sets Section 8 payment standards here.
2 bedroom FMR
$504
FY 2026, utilities included
Payment standard range
$454 to $554
90% to 110% of FMR
Income to afford 2BR
$20,160
per year, at 30% of income
Rank in Puerto Rico
59th of 78
by 2BR FMR
HUD has already published FY 2027. On October 1, 2026 the two-bedroom rate in Lares moves to $517. That's up 3%. The full FY 2027 table is in the history section below.
HUD's number is one input. What does a two-bedroom in Lares actually rent for?
Search any address in Lares 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 | $439 | $395 to $483 | $17,560 | $8.44/hr | -9.9% |
| 1 bedroom | $441 | $397 to $485 | $17,640 | $8.48/hr | -10.0% |
| 2 bedroom | $504 | $454 to $554 | $20,160 | $9.69/hr | -10.0% |
| 3 bedroom | $661 | $595 to $727 | $26,440 | $12.71/hr | -2.9% |
| 4 bedroom | $717 | $645 to $789 | $28,680 | $13.79/hr | -5.4% |
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 | $825 | $743 to $908 |
| 6 bedroom Estimate | $932 | $839 to $1,025 |
| 7 bedroom Estimate | $1,040 | $936 to $1,144 |
| 8 bedroom Estimate | $1,147 | $1,032 to $1,262 |
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 Lares, that runs from $439 for a studio up to $717 for four bedrooms, all five rates in the table above.
Because Lares sits outside any HUD metro area, its rate is a municipio-wide figure built from local rents. One number covers every address in the municipio.
Among Puerto Rico's 78 counties, Lares ranks 59th for two-bedroom FMR. That's about 11% below the state median of $564 and about 50% below the national median county at $1,018. About 27,990 people live here, 45th in the state.
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 Lares somewhere between $454 and $554. 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.
$504 a month is affordable, by HUD's 30% rule, on an income of roughly $20,160 a year. Put another way, $10 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% ($454) | HAP at 100% ($504) | HAP at 110% ($554) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,500 | $750 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| $4,000 | $1,200 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Rate history
The two-bedroom rate went down 10% from FY 2025 ($560) to FY 2026 ($504). Since FY 2020 it's up 19% in total, about 2.9% 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 | $362 | $372 | $424 | $554 | $669 | — |
| FY 2021 | $381 | $393 | $448 | $571 | $684 | +5.7% |
| FY 2022 | $387 | $402 | $462 | $574 | $676 | +3.1% |
| FY 2023 | $384 | $420 | $485 | $597 | $677 | +5.0% |
| FY 2024 | $450 | $453 | $519 | $632 | $713 | +7.0% |
| FY 2025 | $487 | $490 | $560 | $681 | $758 | +7.9% |
| FY 2026 | $439 | $441 | $504 | $661 | $717 | -10.0% |
| FY 2027 | $456 | $475 | $517 | $697 | $743 | +2.6% |
Questions people ask
$504 a month for FY 2026, which runs October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. The other rates are $439 for a studio, $441 for one bedroom, $661 for three and $717 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 Lares actually go for?
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