What HUD offices serve East Palo Alto, California?
Public Housing Agencies operate federally assisted affordable housing programs at local levels on behalf of HUD. Notably, housing agencies are responsible for managing Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher, Public Housing, and Project-Based Voucher waiting lists within their jurisdiction.
Go to the California Public Housing and Low-Income Apartments Waiting Lists page for openings near East Palo Alto.
How many renters live in East Palo Alto, California?
The City of East Palo Alto has 29,520 people living in 7,998 households.
There are 15,209 renters living in 4,185 renter households in this City. Renters make up 51.52 percent of the population living in East Palo Alto.
What is the rental market like in East Palo Alto, California?
There are an estimated 8,727 housing units in the East Palo Alto area. Of these, 4,642 units are rental homes, making up 53 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in East Palo Alto, California, there are 1 rental units.
What is the vacancy rate for rentals in East Palo Alto?
The rental vacancy rate in East Palo Alto is 9 percent. This is a higher than average vacancy rate. When rental vacancy rates are high it means that there are a lot of available units and rents tend to be lower.
How many rental units are in East Palo Alto for each bedroom size?
Occupied Rental Units by Size in East Palo Alto
| Studio | One-Bedroom | Two-Bedroom | Three-Bedroom | Four+ Bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 583 | 1,233 | 1,103 | 792 | 345 |
Occupied Rental Units by Size in East Palo Alto
A large number of apartments in East Palo Alto have two or fewer bedrooms. Seniors and young professionals especially may have more success finding an apartment that meets their needs.
How many renter households in East Palo Alto are overburdened by housing costs?
Among renter households in this market, 56 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 34 percent of households are extremely rent overburdened. When renters pay too much for their housing, it leaves little money for other necessities like food, clothes, or medicine.
The federal government says that renters are cost-burdened if they pay more than a third of their monthly income for rent and utilities.
How Much Is Rent in East Palo Alto
Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $2,292 to $4,473. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.
| Bed Size | 2024 Fair Market Rents |
| Studio | $2,292 |
| One BR | $2,818 |
| Two BR | $3,359 |
| Three BR | $4,112 |
| Four BR | $4,473 |
2024 Fair Market Rents in East Palo Alto, California
How many units are rented at Fair Market Rent (FMR) in East Palo Alto?
Renters with a Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher must select a home that is at or below the area’s Fair Market Rent. Markets with a large share of units above FMR tend to have longer search times to find a qualified unit, while those with a large share of units below FMR tend to have more choices and shorter search times. The share below FMR can vary by size of unit, as shown in the table below.
These are the approximate number of units renting below the FMR in this market:
| Unit Size | Count of Units Below FMR | Percentage of Total Units Below FMR |
| Studio | 215 | 37 percent |
| One BR | 473 | 38 percent |
| Two BR | 274 | 25 percent |
Rental Units Below FMR in East Palo Alto, California
How many affordable rental units are in East Palo Alto?
There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in East Palo Alto, California including the following:
| Federal Program | Unit Count |
| Low Income Housing Tax Credit | 428 |
| Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance | 228 |
Tracked Units by Federal Program in East Palo Alto, California
Rental units may be funded in part by multiple federal programs.
Income Based Apartments in East Palo Alto, California
East Palo Alto features 78 income based apartments. Tenants of income based apartments typically pay no more than 30% of their income towards rent and utilities.
Low Rent Apartments in East Palo Alto, California
There are 403 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in East Palo Alto.
Housing Choice Vouchers in East Palo Alto, California
On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay East Palo Alto landlords $1,500 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $600 towards rent in East Palo Alto.
The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in East Palo Alto, California for a two-bedroom apartment is between $3,023 and $3,695.
Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.
