HUD Fair Market Rent · FY 2026 · effective Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026
Fair Market Rent in Portsmouth city, Virginia (FY 2026)
$1,713 a month. That's HUD's FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom in Portsmouth city, and it's the baseline every voucher in Portsmouth is measured against.
2 bedroom FMR
$1,713
FY 2026, utilities included
Payment standard range
$1,542 to $1,884
90% to 110% of FMR
Income to afford 2BR
$68,520
per year, at 30% of income
Rank in Virginia
30th of 133
by 2BR FMR
HUD has already published FY 2027. On October 1, 2026 the two-bedroom rate in Portsmouth moves to $1,667. That's down 3%. The full FY 2027 table is in the history section below.
HUD's number is one input. What does a two-bedroom in Portsmouth actually rent for?
Search any address in Portsmouth 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 | $1,492 | $1,343 to $1,641 | $59,680 | $28.69/hr | +1.2% |
| 1 bedroom | $1,512 | $1,361 to $1,663 | $60,480 | $29.08/hr | +2.0% |
| 2 bedroom | $1,713 | $1,542 to $1,884 | $68,520 | $32.94/hr | +1.0% |
| 3 bedroom | $2,376 | $2,138 to $2,614 | $95,040 | $45.69/hr | +0.6% |
| 4 bedroom | $2,797 | $2,517 to $3,077 | $111,880 | $53.79/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 | $3,217 | $2,895 to $3,539 |
| 6 bedroom Estimate | $3,636 | $3,272 to $4,000 |
| 7 bedroom Estimate | $4,056 | $3,650 to $4,462 |
| 8 bedroom Estimate | $4,475 | $4,028 to $4,923 |
Source: HUD Office of Policy Development and Research, FY 2026 Fair Market Rents. Rents include utilities. huduser.gov
HUD sets Fair Market Rent once a year, based on what typical units in the area actually rent for, with utilities folded in. FY 2026 runs October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026, and in Portsmouth city the five published rates run from $1,492 to $2,797, studio through four bedrooms.
Portsmouth doesn't get its own number. It sits inside the Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News metro and shares one rate with 14 other cities, including Virginia Beach city, Chesapeake city, Norfolk city. HUD sets metro FMRs from rents across the whole metro, which is why a rural corner of a big metro can carry a city-sized rate.
The state median two-bedroom FMR is $1,254. Portsmouth comes in at $1,713, about 37% above that, and ranks 30th of 133 in Virginia. Against the national median county ($1,018) it's about 68% above. Population is around 97,384.
Counties sharing the Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News metro rate
Virginia Beach city
$1,713VA · pop 457,900
Chesapeake city
$1,713VA · pop 249,377
Norfolk city
$1,713VA · pop 236,973
Newport News city
$1,713VA · pop 185,118
Hampton city
$1,713VA · pop 137,217
Suffolk city
$1,713VA · pop 94,856
James City County
$1,713VA · pop 78,818
York County
$1,713VA · pop 70,238
Isle of Wight County
$1,713VA · pop 38,898
Gloucester County
$1,713VA · pop 38,875
Currituck County
$1,713NC · pop 28,616
Williamsburg city
$1,713VA · pop 15,486
Rates by ZIP code
HUD also publishes Small Area FMRs for the 8 ZIP codes it covers in Portsmouth. Two-bedroom rates run from $1,400 in 23707 (Portsmouth) to $1,680 in 23708 (Portsmouth), a $280 spread inside one city. Whether your housing authority uses the ZIP rate or the city rate depends on whether HUD has designated this area for Small Area FMRs. Ask the PHA which one it's on before you price a unit.
What a voucher pays here
The FMR isn't the check you'd receive. Your local housing authority turns it into a payment standard, set between 90% and 110% of FMR, so a two-bedroom here lands between $1,542 and $1,884. Subtract about 30% of the tenant's income and that's the housing assistance payment. If you ask more than similar unassisted units rent for, the PHA's rent reasonableness check will push back.
At the standard 30% of income, a household needs about $68,520 a year to afford $1,713 a month. On a 40-hour week that's $33 an hour.
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% ($1,542) | HAP at 100% ($1,713) | HAP at 110% ($1,884) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,500 | $750 | $792 | $963 | $1,134 |
| $4,000 | $1,200 | $342 | $513 | $684 |
Rate history
The two-bedroom rate went up 1% from FY 2025 ($1,696) to FY 2026 ($1,713). Since FY 2020 it's up 51% in total, about 7.1% a year. The Virginia median moved up 5% over the same year.
| Year | Studio | 1 BR | 2 BR | 3 BR | 4 BR | 2BR change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY 2020 | $952 | $958 | $1,136 | $1,603 | $1,994 | — |
| FY 2021 | $960 | $972 | $1,147 | $1,618 | $1,986 | +1.0% |
| FY 2022 | $993 | $1,015 | $1,193 | $1,676 | $2,042 | +4.0% |
| FY 2023 | $1,116 | $1,137 | $1,329 | $1,857 | $2,264 | +11.4% |
| FY 2024 | $1,279 | $1,287 | $1,493 | $2,079 | $2,532 | +12.3% |
| FY 2025 | $1,475 | $1,483 | $1,696 | $2,361 | $2,809 | +13.6% |
| FY 2026 | $1,492 | $1,512 | $1,713 | $2,376 | $2,797 | +1.0% |
| FY 2027 | $1,470 | $1,488 | $1,667 | $2,298 | $2,710 | -2.7% |
Nearby counties
Norfolk city
$1,7136 mi · pop 236,973
Chesapeake city
$1,7137 mi · pop 249,377
Suffolk city
$1,71312 mi · pop 94,856
Hampton city
$1,71314 mi · pop 137,217
Virginia Beach city
$1,71316 mi · pop 457,900
Isle of Wight County
$1,71319 mi · pop 38,898
Poquoson city
$1,71320 mi · pop 12,479
Newport News city
$1,71322 mi · pop 185,118
Questions people ask
$1,713 a month for FY 2026, which runs October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. The other rates are $1,492 for a studio, $1,512 for one bedroom, $2,376 for three and $2,797 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 Portsmouth actually go for?
HUD's number is one input. Search any address in Portsmouth for a rent estimate built from nearby comps. 3 free searches, no card.
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