What HUD offices serve Fort Smith, Arkansas?
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 Arkansas Public Housing and Low-Income Apartments Waiting Lists page for openings near Fort Smith.
How many renters live in Fort Smith, Arkansas?
The City of Fort Smith has 89,981 people living in 36,587 households.
There are 35,267 renters living in 17,668 renter households in this City. Renters make up 39.19 percent of the population living in Fort Smith.
What is the rental market like in Fort Smith, Arkansas?
There are an estimated 39,945 housing units in the Fort Smith area. Of these, 18,888 units are rental homes, making up 47 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Fort Smith, Arkansas, there are 1 rental units.
What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Fort Smith?
The rental vacancy rate in Fort Smith is 6 percent. This is a lower than average vacancy rate. When rental vacancy rates are low there are fewer available units. Rents tend to be higher as more people compete for scarce housing.
How many rental units are in Fort Smith for each bedroom size?
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Fort Smith
| Studio | One-Bedroom | Two-Bedroom | Three-Bedroom | Four+ Bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 615 | 4,185 | 7,560 | 4,320 | 854 |
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Fort Smith
A large number of apartments in Fort Smith 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 Fort Smith are overburdened by housing costs?
Among renter households in this market, 37 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 17 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 Fort Smith
Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $674 to $1,437. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.
| Bed Size | 2024 Fair Market Rents |
| Studio | $674 |
| One BR | $678 |
| Two BR | $891 |
| Three BR | $1,222 |
| Four BR | $1,437 |
2024 Fair Market Rents in Fort Smith, Arkansas
How many units are rented at Fair Market Rent (FMR) in Fort Smith?
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 | 360 | 59 percent |
| One BR | 2,757 | 66 percent |
| Two BR | 4,509 | 60 percent |
Rental Units Below FMR in Fort Smith, Arkansas
How many affordable rental units are in Fort Smith?
There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Fort Smith, Arkansas including the following:
| Federal Program | Unit Count |
| Low Income Housing Tax Credit | 813 |
| Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance | 681 |
| Mod Rehab Project-Based Rental Assistance | 63 |
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Fort Smith, Arkansas
Rental units may be funded in part by multiple federal programs.
Income Based Apartments in Fort Smith, Arkansas
Fort Smith features 781 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 Fort Smith, Arkansas
There are 740 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Fort Smith.
Housing Choice Vouchers in Fort Smith, Arkansas
On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Fort Smith landlords $400 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $300 towards rent in Fort Smith.
The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Fort Smith, Arkansas for a two-bedroom apartment is between $802 and $980.
Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.
