Public Housing Agencies Serving Maricopa County, Arizona

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.

Maricopa County, Arizona Affordable Housing Data

Income Based Apartments in Maricopa County, Arizona

Maricopa County features 12,278 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 Maricopa County, Arizona

There are 17,494 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Maricopa County.

Housing Choice Vouchers in Maricopa County, Arizona

On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Maricopa County landlords $800 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $300 towards rent in Maricopa County.

The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Maricopa County, Arizona for a two-bedroom apartment is between $1,566 and $1,914.

2023 Maricopa County, Arizona Fair Market Rents and Housing Choice Voucher Payment Standards

Fair Market Rents can be used to better understand the average housing costs of an area. Fair Market Rents are used by HUD to establish payment and rent standards for federal rental assistance programs like the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program.

Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.

Maricopa County, AZ Affordable Housing Snapshot

Total Affordable Apartment Properties	344
Total Low Income Apartments	30,447
Total Housing Units with Rental Assistance	12,278
Percentage of Housing Units Occupied By Renters	39.32%
Average Renter Household Size	2.76
Average Household Size	2.75
Median Household Income	$54,229 ±$365
Median Rent	$962 ±$5
Percentage Of Renters Overburdened	46.4% ± 0.56pp
Total Population	4,018,143

Population and Household Demographics

Maricopa County is a county in Arizona with a population of 4,018,143. There are 1,442,518 households in the county with an average household size of 2.75 persons. 39.32% of households in Maricopa County are renters.

Income and Rent Overburden in Maricopa County

The median gross income for households in Maricopa County is $54,229 a year, or $4,519 a month. The median rent for the county is $962 a month.

Households who pay more than thirty percent of their gross income are considered to be Rent Overburdened. In Maricopa County, a household making less than $3,207 a month would be considered overburdened when renting an apartment at or above the median rent. 46.4% of households who rent are overburdened in Maricopa County.

Area Median Income In Maricopa County

Affordable housing program eligibility is always determined by one's income. Each household's income is compared to the incomes of all other households in the area. This is accomplished through a statistic established by the government called the Area Median Income, most often referred to as AMI. The AMI is calculated and published each year by HUD.

In Maricopa County, HUD calculates the Area Median Income for a family of four as $88,800

Most affordable housing programs determine eligibility based on the percent of AMI a given household's income is. Among the programs that determine eligibility based on the AMI are Section 8, HOME, LIHTC, Section 515, 202 and 811.

Rental Assistance in Maricopa County

Rental assistance is a type of housing subsidy that pays for a portion of a renter’s monthly housing costs, including rent and tenant paid utilities. This housing assistance can come in the form of Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, project-based Section 8 contracts, public housing, USDA Rental Assistance (in Section 515 properties) as well as HUD Section 202 and 811 properties for elderly and disabled households.

Income Qualifications for HUD Rental Assistance in Maricopa County