HUD FMR Data · Updated April 2026
Average Rent in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA
The HUD Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA is $3,124 per month. Santa Maria-Santa Barbara's 2-bedroom FMR of $3,124 runs about 150% above the U.S. national median of $1,250 — a meaningfully higher rent than the typical American county. A typical local household earning $95,977 would spend 39.1% of pre-tax income on this rent.
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, California runs on the top tier of the U.S. rental market. HUD Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom is $3,124 ($2,746 for a 1-bedroom, $4,075 for a 3-bedroom). Counties at this rent level concentrate in coastal-metro corridors and resort towns where housing supply lags demand structurally.
Rent burden is at the federal "cost-burdened" threshold: 39 percent of median income going to rent. Manageable for most households but leaves limited room for savings or unplanned expenses. For renters and prospective movers, the HUD FMR is the asking-rent baseline for a modest unit; actual market rents on freshly-listed units typically run 5-15 percent above the FMR in faster-growing markets. The county vacancy rate (6.8 percent) is the structural indicator of how much availability exists in the local market.
RentIndex draws on HUD Fair Market Rents (annual, by bedroom size, every U.S. county) plus Census ACS housing data (median rent, median household income, rent burden, vacancy rate). Each value on the site refreshes on its source’s publication cadence and stamps the as-of date. The methodology page lists every input with the federal source URL.
A practical caveat for rent-research: HUD FMR is the 40th-percentile baseline for modest units, not a current asking-rent average. In rapidly-growing markets, freshly-listed asking rents typically run 5-20 percent above HUD FMR. Cross-reference the FMR against current Zillow, Apartments.com, or local Craigslist listings before treating the FMR as the rent you will actually pay.
Fair Market Rent by Bedroom in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara's rent ladder runs from $2,459 for a studio up to $4,647 for a 4-bedroom — a 1.9x spread typical of HUD's FMR formula, which scales each bedroom size against the area 2-bedroom standard. The 2-bedroom unit is HUD's reference category and the figure most often cited in housing policy.
| Size | Monthly FMR |
|---|---|
| Studio | $2,459 |
| 1 Bedroom | $2,746 |
| 2 Bedroom | $3,124 |
| 3 Bedroom | $4,075 |
| 4 Bedroom | $4,647 |
How Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA Compares to the U.S.
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara's 2-bedroom FMR of $3,124 runs about 150% above the U.S. national median of $1,250 — a meaningfully higher rent than the typical American county. HUD\'s national median 2-bedroom FMR currently sits at $1,250 per month, against a Census-reported national median household income of $71,049.
Fair Market Rent in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara rose 4.3% year over year, broadly tracking national rent inflation as measured by the BLS Consumer Price Index for rent of primary residence.
Affordability and Rent Burden
With a median household income of $95,977, a typical Santa Maria-Santa Barbara household would spend 39.1% of pre-tax income on a 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent. That's above HUD's 30% cost-burden threshold — meaning the median household here is officially "cost burdened" at FMR.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Median Household Income (Census ACS) | $95,977 |
| Rent Burden (annualized 2BR FMR / income) | 39.1% |
| Income Needed for 2BR (HUD 30% rule) | $124,960/yr |
Where the Numbers Come From
Every rent figure on this page is HUD\'s published Fair Market Rent for the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA FMR area in HUD\'s current fiscal-year release. HUD calculates FMR as the 40th percentile of gross rents for standard-quality units, using Census American Community Survey base rents updated with the BLS CPI rent of primary residence. We do not adjust HUD\'s figures. The full step-by-step calculation is on the RentIndex methodology page, and the underlying data is publicly available at HUD User.
Other California Counties
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average rent in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA?
The HUD Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom unit in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA is $3,124 per month — the 40th-percentile gross rent for standard-quality, non-substandard rentals in this area. Santa Maria-Santa Barbara's 2-bedroom FMR of $3,124 runs about 150% above the U.S. national median of $1,250 — a meaningfully higher rent than the typical American county.
How does Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA rent compare to the rest of the U.S.?
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara's 2-bedroom FMR of $3,124 runs about 150% above the U.S. national median of $1,250 — a meaningfully higher rent than the typical American county. Rent in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA is set against a national median 2BR FMR of $1,250 and a national median household income of $71,049.
Is rent affordable in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA?
With a median household income of $95,977, a typical Santa Maria-Santa Barbara household would spend 39.1% of pre-tax income on a 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent. That's above HUD's 30% cost-burden threshold — meaning the median household here is officially "cost burdened" at FMR.
Has rent gone up or down in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA?
Fair Market Rent in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara rose 4.3% year over year, broadly tracking national rent inflation as measured by the BLS Consumer Price Index for rent of primary residence.
What does Fair Market Rent mean and where does the figure come from?
Fair Market Rent is the 40th percentile of gross rents for standard-quality rental units, published annually by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD calculates FMR using American Community Survey base rents trimmed and updated with BLS Consumer Price Index rent indexes, then uses it to set Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher payment standards. All rent figures on this page come directly from HUD's public FMR dataset.
Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents (public domain) · huduser.gov/portal/datasets/fmr.html. Income: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year. Rent inflation reference: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI rent of primary residence. Last refreshed April 2026.