High-FMR payment standards - Salinas, CA MSA
HUD FY2026 2-BR Fair Market Rent for Salinas, CA MSA is $2,684/month - 98th percentile of 396 published metro FMR areas (#387 cheapest→expensive) ; voucher vs ACS median: 35.3% above market ; FMR rows touch Monterey County .
Expensive rung: who shares Salinas, CA MSA's FMR tier
Near-amount peers: Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA MSA ($2,693), Urban Honolulu, HI MSA ($2,642), Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA HUD Metro FMR Area ($2,601) .
For scale, bottom-quartile published amounts include Atascosa County, TX HUD Metro FMR Area, Erie County, OH HUD Metro FMR Area, Bond County, IL HUD Metro FMR Area, St. Joseph, MO-KS MSA, San Juan-Bayamón-Caguas, PR Metro Area, Saginaw, MI MSA - those metros are not substitutes for lease-up planning in Salinas, CA MSA.
CA-state FMR neighbors for Salinas, CA MSA
Closest 2-BR amounts inside CA: Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA MSA ($2,693); Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA HUD Metro FMR Area ($2,601); Napa, CA MSA ($2,773); Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA MSA ($2,827); San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA MSA ($2,512); San Benito County, CA HUD Metro FMR Area ($2,902); Oakland-Fremont, CA HUD Metro FMR Area ($2,912); San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA MSA ($3,001) . Alphabetical “nearby” lists are intentionally not used here - amount proximity is the comparison that matters for payment standards.
What are the HUD FY2026 bedroom FMRs for Salinas, CA MSA?
| Size | HUD FMR |
|---|---|
| Studio | $2,173/mo |
| 1-BR | $2,232/mo |
| 2-BR | $2,684/mo |
| 3-BR | $3,623/mo |
| 4-BR | $3,945/mo |
Section 8 payment standard range for Salinas, CA MSA
HUD lets each Public Housing Authority set its payment standard between 90% and 110% of the published Fair Market Rent for the bedroom size served. These dollar amounts are derived from HUD FY2026 FMR for Salinas, CA MSA; your PHA may choose a figure inside this band. This is not a quote for a specific unit, availability, or waitlist status.
| Size | HUD FMR | 90% floor | 110% ceiling |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | $2,173/mo | $1,956/mo | $2,390/mo |
| 1-BR | $2,232/mo | $2,009/mo | $2,455/mo |
| 2-BR | $2,684/mo | $2,416/mo | $2,952/mo |
| 3-BR | $3,623/mo | $3,261/mo | $3,985/mo |
| 4-BR | $3,945/mo | $3,551/mo | $4,340/mo |
For a 2-bedroom in Salinas, CA MSA, the HUD reference rent is $2,684/month, so the lawful payment-standard band runs $2,416–$2,952/month before any tenant income share.
HUD FMR filing-year trail · Salinas, CA MSA
Published two-bedroom Fair Market Rent for this HUD area across FY2022-2026. Year-over-year deltas compare adjacent fiscal years only. This is a historical HUD reference-rent series, not a PHA payment standard, unit quote, availability, eligibility, or waitlist result.
- Latest 2-BR
- $2,684
- FY2026
- vs prior FY
- -10.0%
- from FY2025 $2,982
- Span change
- +36.5%
- FY2022-2026
- Years shown
- 5
- HUD FMR history
| FY | 2-BR FMR | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | $1,967/mo | - |
| 2023 | $2,675/mo | +36.0% |
| 2024 | $2,879/mo | +7.6% |
| 2025 | $2,982/mo | +3.6% |
| 2026 | $2,684/mo | -10.0% |
Source: HUD USER Fair Market Rents historical series for Salinas, CA MSA, FY2022-2026. Adjacent-year deltas only.
ACS median 2-BR rent $1,984/mo → 35.3% above market (generous). Detail: gap analysis for Salinas, CA MSA.
CA agencies near this metro's scale key
Housing authorities in CA whose HCV caseload sits closest to a CBSA-stable scale target (not the statewide giants list - that list was identical across siblings):
- City of Compton Housing Authority
- Carlsbad Housing & Homeless Services
- Housing Authority of the City of Madera
- CITY OF ROSEVILLE
- Housing Authority of the City of Norwalk
- KINGS COUNTY HOUSING AUTH
- Hawthorne Housing
- Housing Authority of the City of Torrance
- Housing Authority of the City of South Gate
- CRESCENT CITY HSG AUTH
Full near-amount ladder
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA MSA · $2,693
- Urban Honolulu, HI MSA · $2,642
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,601
- Napa, CA MSA · $2,773
- Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA MSA · $2,827
- San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA MSA · $2,512
- Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT MSA · $2,511
- Seattle-Bellevue, WA HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,501
- Kalawao County, HI HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,492
- San Benito County, CA HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,902
- Oakland-Fremont, CA HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,912
- Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,941
What to do with this FMR desk
Salinas, CA HUD FY2026 2-BR FMR is $2,684/mo; use the schedule as a source desk, not a lease quote.
- Read the FY2022-2026 filing trail (+36.5% across the span) before comparing peers. FMR history on this page
- Open the voucher-vs-market gap board for this CBSA (35.3% above market). Metro gap page
- Confirm how PHAs may set payment standards at 90-110% of FMR, and why the two figures are not interchangeable. FMR vs payment standard
FMR is HUD's published Fair Market Rent for this FMR area. It is not a PHA payment standard, unit quote, eligibility result, or waitlist status. Confirm any leasing figure with the PHA that serves the unit.
Source: HUD USER Fair Market Rent (FY2026) ; Census ACS median gross rent. Confirm the live PHA figure before leasing. Methodology.
Verify with HUD → · Verify with U.S. Census Bureau → · Set a September HUD update reminder