Low Income Apartments and Affordable Housing For Rent in Orange County, CA

Discover affordable housing in Orange County where there are 294+ housing opportunities based on income and household needs like accessible units for seniors or persons with disabilities. Find and apply to these low income apartments now.

Heritage Park Apartments

950 S. Gilbert St., Anaheim, California 92804

Flanders Pointe Apartments

15520 Tustin Village Way, Tustin, California 92780

Villa Anaheim Apartments

3305 West Lincoln Ave., Anaheim, California 92801

Dorado Senior Apartments

8622 Stanton Ave., Buena Park, California 90620

The Irvine Inn Apartments

2810 Warner Avenue, Irvine, California 92606

Andalucia Apartments

815 N Harbor Blvd, Santa Ana, California 9270

Luxaira Apartments

1105 Hamal, Irvine, California 92618

Hermosa Village Apartments

1515 S Calle del Mar, Anaheim, California 92802

The Arbor at Woodbury

300 Regal, Irvine, California 92620

Flower Terrace Apartments

1401 N Flower St, Santa Ana, California 92706

Sullivan Manor Apartments

2516 W 1st St, Santa Ana, California 92703

Huntington Villa Yorba

16000 Villa Yorba, Huntington Beach, California 92647

Bonterra Apartments Homes

401 Discovery Lane, Brea, California 92821

Oceana Apartments

18151 Beach Boulevard, Huntington Beach, California 92648

Briar Crest Apartments

11701 Stuart Dr, Garden Grove, California 92843

Santa Ana Arts Collective Apartments

1666 North Main Street, Santa Ana, California 92706

Oakcrest Heights Apartments

22733 Oakcrest Circle, Yorba Linda, California 92887

Casa Ramon Apartments

840 W Walnut Ave, Orange, California 92868

The Depot at Santiago Apartments

923 N Santiago St, Santa Ana, California 92701

Lemon Grove Apartments

1148 N Lemon St, Orange, California 92867

The Hourly Wage Needed to Afford A Safe, Modest 2 Bed Apartment In Orange County, California
$52.71/hour
$36.71 (+229%) more than California minimum wage and $45.46 (+627%) more than the Federal minimum wage.
Learn More About Orange County, California Affordable Housing ↓

What HUD offices serve Orange County, 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.

Operates the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) programs for Orange County, California.

Go to the California Public Housing and Low-Income Apartments Waiting Lists page for openings near Orange County.

How many renters live in Orange County, California?

The County of Orange County has 3,151,184 people living in 1,085,225 households.

There are 1,352,277 renters living in 479,673 renter households in this County. Renters make up 42.91 percent of the population living in Orange County.

What is the rental market like in Orange County, California?

There are an estimated 1,146,379 housing units in the Orange County area. Of these, 500,378 units are rental homes, making up 44 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Orange County, California, there are 1 rental units.

What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Orange County?

The rental vacancy rate in Orange County is 4 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 Orange County for each bedroom size?

Occupied Rental Units by Size in Orange County
Studio One-Bedroom Two-Bedroom Three-Bedroom Four+ Bedrooms
38,070 118,071 193,205 90,283 33,916
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Orange County

A large number of apartments in Orange County 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 Orange County are overburdened by housing costs?

Among renter households in this market, 55 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 30 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 Orange County

Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $2,200 to $4,467. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.

Bed Size 2024 Fair Market Rents
Studio $2,200
One BR $2,344
Two BR $2,783
Three BR $3,769
Four BR $4,467
2024 Fair Market Rents in Orange County, California

How many units are rented at Fair Market Rent (FMR) in Orange County?

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 11,534 30 percent
One BR 29,756 25 percent
Two BR 20,871 11 percent
Rental Units Below FMR in Orange County, California

How many affordable rental units are in Orange County?

There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Orange County, California including the following:

Federal Program Unit Count
Low Income Housing Tax Credit 19,622
Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance 4,427
Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly 3
Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities 105
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Orange County, California

Rental units may be funded in part by multiple federal programs.

Income Based Apartments in Orange County, California

Orange County features 5,087 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 Orange County, California

There are 17,241 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Orange County.

Housing Choice Vouchers in Orange County, California

On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Orange County landlords $1,200 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $500 towards rent in Orange County.

The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Orange County, California for a two-bedroom apartment is between $2,505 and $3,061.

Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.