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The FY2026 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent in the Houston metro is $1,558.

Census median gross rent is $1,430 (margin of error $6). That figure is the population-weighted mean of the county Fair Market Rents.

HUD Fair Market Rent, Census rent, value, and income, and building permits for Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX.

2-bedroom FMR
$1,558
FY2026
Census rent
$1,430
ACS B25064
Gross yield
5.76%
Rent times 12 / value
2025 permits
65,075
Units authorized
Population
7,904,627
July 1, 2025
Median value
$298,000
ACS B25077
Renter income
$53,247
ACS B25119
Rent-to-income
32.23%
Annual rent / renter income

Rent by bedroom

BedroomsFair Market RentCensus medianMargin of error
Studio$1,266$1,195$20
1 BR$1,316$1,214$9
2 BR$1,558$1,438$9
3 BR$2,097$1,773$14
4 BR$2,614$2,238$36
5+ BR$2,464$145

Small Area FMR range

BedroomsSmall Area FMR
Studio$890 to $930
1 BR$920 to $960
2 BR$1,090 to $1,160
3 BR$1,470 to $1,530
4 BR$1,820 to $1,900

Rental vacancy is 9.15%, from 103,941 vacant-for-rent units and 1,031,551 renter-occupied units.

Counties

CountyPopulation2BR FMRSection 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield
Harris County5,045,026$1,573Section 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield
Fort Bend County975,191$1,573Section 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield
Montgomery County781,194$1,573Section 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield
Brazoria County419,080$1,359Section 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield
Galveston County372,207$1,573Section 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield
Liberty County121,364$1,573Section 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield
Waller County69,858$1,573Section 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield
Chambers County57,594$1,573Section 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield
Austin County33,625$1,095Section 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield
San Jacinto County29,488$1,149Section 8Voucher premiumRent-to-incomeGross yield

Building permits, 2025

StructureBuildingsUnitsValuation, thousands of dollars
1 unit46,21946,21913,843,624
2 units1,1982,396481,835
3 and 4 units217510,918
5 or more units47716,3852,554,376
Total65,07516,890,753

Method

The 100 metros are the 100 metropolitan statistical areas with the largest POPESTIMATE2025 in the Census Bureau Vintage 2025 population estimates. Component counties are the county rows in that file. The metro Fair Market Rent by bedroom is the July 1, 2025 population-weighted mean of the FY2026 county Fair Market Rent, rounded half up. A county with town schedules uses the population-weighted mean of those town rents. Census median rent, home value, and renter income are the ACS 2024 5-year estimates for the metropolitan statistical area. Gross rent yield equals median gross rent (B25064) times 12, divided by median home value (B25077), in percent rounded half up to 0.01. Rent-to-income equals median gross rent times 12, divided by renter median household income (B25119 renter column), on the same rounding. Rental vacancy equals vacant-for-rent units (B25004) divided by renter-occupied units (B25003) plus vacant-for-rent units, on the same rounding. Building permits are housing units authorized in the Census Building Permits Survey 2025 annual CBSA file, survey date 202599. Units are the sum of 1-unit, 2-unit, 3-and-4-unit, and 5-or-more-unit units. Valuation is the sum of the published values, which the survey reports in thousands of dollars. The Small Area FMR range is the lowest and highest ZIP Small Area FMR among component counties that have one.

Source: HUD FY2026 Fair Market Rents, effective 2025-10-01, retrieved 2026-10-09, https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/fmr.html; U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Vintage 2025, as of 2025-07-01, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/metro/totals/cbsa-est2025-alldata.csv; American Community Survey 2024 5-year tables B25031, B25064, B25077, B25119, B25003, and B25004, as of 2024-07-01 (data years 2020-2024), retrieved 2026-10-09, https://data.census.gov/table/ACSDT5Y2024.B25064; and the Census Bureau Building Permits Survey 2025 annual CBSA file, https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/CBSA%20(beginning%20Jan%202024)/cbsa2025a.txt.

Tax education

Educational rental tax worksheets

The rent and value figures on this page are market context. They are not taxable rent received.

Educational rental tax worksheets

Frequently asked questions

What is the 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent in the Houston metro?

The FY2026 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent in the Houston metro is $1,558.

What is the Census median gross rent in the Houston metro?

ACS 2024 5-year median gross rent in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX is $1,430 (margin of error $6).

What is the gross rent yield in the Houston metro?

Gross rent yield is 5.76%, from median gross rent $1,430 and median home value $298,000.

How many housing units were authorized by permits in the Houston metro in 2025?

The Census Building Permits Survey authorized 65,075 housing units in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX in 2025.