Small Area FMRs: ZIP-Level Rent Limits Explained

Standard Fair Market Rents apply uniformly across an entire metropolitan area — whether you're looking at a luxury neighborhood or an underserved one. Small Area FMRs change this by publishing different rent limits for each ZIP code within designated metros, reflecting actual rental market variations at the neighborhood level.

Why SAFMRs Were Created

Research showed that voucher holders were disproportionately concentrated in low-income, high-poverty neighborhoods, partly because standard FMRs were too high in low-cost neighborhoods (making it profitable for landlords to accept vouchers there) but too low in high-cost neighborhoods (making it impossible to use vouchers there). SAFMRs are designed to address this imbalance.

How SAFMRs Work

In SAFMR-designated metros, each ZIP code has its own FMR for each bedroom size. In a high-cost downtown ZIP, the SAFMR may be substantially above the metro-wide FMR; in a suburban ZIP, it may be below. This allows voucher holders to actually compete for units in higher-opportunity areas.

Find ZIP-level SAFMR data for select metro areas on this site.