High-FMR payment standards - Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA MSA
HUD FY2026 2-BR Fair Market Rent for Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA MSA is $4,214/month - 100th percentile of 396 published metro FMR areas (#396 cheapest→expensive) ; voucher vs ACS median: 84.3% above market ; FMR rows touch Santa Cruz County .
Expensive rung: who shares Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA MSA's FMR tier
Near-amount peers: Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA MSA ($3,124), San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA MSA ($3,001), Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH HUD Metro FMR Area ($2,941) .
For scale, bottom-quartile published amounts include San Juan-Bayamón-Caguas, PR Metro Area, Erie County, OH HUD Metro FMR Area, Atascosa County, TX HUD Metro FMR Area, Bond County, IL HUD Metro FMR Area, St. Joseph, MO-KS MSA, Sheboygan, WI MSA - those metros are not substitutes for lease-up planning in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA MSA.
CA-state FMR neighbors for Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA MSA
Closest 2-BR amounts inside CA: Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA MSA ($3,124); San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA MSA ($3,001); Oakland-Fremont, CA HUD Metro FMR Area ($2,912); San Benito County, CA HUD Metro FMR Area ($2,902); Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA MSA ($2,827); Napa, CA MSA ($2,773); Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA MSA ($2,693); Salinas, CA MSA ($2,684) . 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 Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA MSA?
| Size | HUD FMR |
|---|---|
| Studio | $3,179/mo |
| 1-BR | $3,298/mo |
| 2-BR | $4,214/mo |
| 3-BR | $5,377/mo |
| 4-BR | $5,659/mo |
Section 8 payment standard range for Santa Cruz-Watsonville, 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 Santa Cruz-Watsonville, 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 | $3,179/mo | $2,861/mo | $3,497/mo |
| 1-BR | $3,298/mo | $2,968/mo | $3,628/mo |
| 2-BR | $4,214/mo | $3,793/mo | $4,635/mo |
| 3-BR | $5,377/mo | $4,839/mo | $5,915/mo |
| 4-BR | $5,659/mo | $5,093/mo | $6,225/mo |
For a 2-bedroom in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA MSA, the HUD reference rent is $4,214/month, so the lawful payment-standard band runs $3,793–$4,635/month before any tenant income share.
HUD FMR filing-year trail · Santa Cruz-Watsonville, 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
- $4,214
- FY2026
- vs prior FY
- -0.2%
- from FY2025 $4,223
- Span change
- +34.3%
- FY2022-2026
- Years shown
- 5
- HUD FMR history
| FY | 2-BR FMR | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | $3,138/mo | - |
| 2023 | $3,293/mo | +4.9% |
| 2024 | $4,054/mo | +23.1% |
| 2025 | $4,223/mo | +4.2% |
| 2026 | $4,214/mo | -0.2% |
Source: HUD USER Fair Market Rents historical series for Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA MSA, FY2022-2026. Adjacent-year deltas only.
ACS median 2-BR rent $2,286/mo → 84.3% above market (generous). Detail: gap analysis for Santa Cruz-Watsonville, 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 VACAVILLE
- Housing Authority of the County of Humboldt
- MENDOCINO COUNTY
- HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF NAPA
- City of Pasadena Housing Department
- Housing Authority of the City of Santa Monica
- Housing Authority of the City of Inglewood
- City of Oceanside Community Development Comm
- CITY OF PITTSBURG HSG AUTH
- CDC of National City
Full near-amount ladder
- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA MSA · $3,124
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA MSA · $3,001
- Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,941
- Oakland-Fremont, CA HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,912
- San Benito County, CA HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,902
- Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA MSA · $2,827
- Napa, CA MSA · $2,773
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA MSA · $2,693
- Salinas, CA MSA · $2,684
- Urban Honolulu, HI MSA · $2,642
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,601
- San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA MSA · $2,512
What to do with this FMR desk
Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA HUD FY2026 2-BR FMR is $4,214/mo; use the schedule as a source desk, not a lease quote.
- Read the FY2022-2026 filing trail (+34.3% across the span) before comparing peers. FMR history on this page
- Open the voucher-vs-market gap board for this CBSA (84.3% 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.
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