Low Income Apartments and Affordable Housing For Rent in Oakland, CA

Discover affordable housing in Oakland where there are 171+ 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.

The Uptown Apartments

500 William Street, Oakland, California 94612

Lion Creek Crossings

6951 Lion Way, Oakland, California 94621

The Claridge Hotel

634 15th St, Oakland, California 94612

Macarthur Apartments

9800 MacArthur Blvd, Oakland, California 94605

Piedmont Apartments

215 West MacArthur Blvd, Oakland, California 94611

Providence House Oakland

540 23rd St, Oakland, California 94612

Westlake Christian Terrace West

275 28th St, Oakland, California 94611

Oak Grove North & South

620 17th St, Oakland, California 94612

Vista Estero

285 8th Avenue, Oakland, California 94606

Acts Cyrene Apartments

9400 International Blvd, Oakland, California 94603

Lincoln Court Senior Apartments

2400 MacArthur Blvd, Oakland, California 94602

Westlake Christian Terrace I

251 28th St, Oakland, California 94611

Harrison Street Senior Housing

1633 Harrison St, Oakland, California 94612

Baywood Apartments

225 41st Street, Oakland, California 94611

San Antonio Terrace Apartments

1485 E 22nd Street, Oakland, California 94606

Casa Arabella

3611 E 12th St, Oakland, California 94601

Posada de Colores

2221 Fruitvale Ave, Oakland, California 94601

Coliseum Connections

805 71st Ave, Oakland, California 94621

Redwood Hill Townhomes

4868 Calaveras Ave, Oakland, California 94619

Empyrean Tower

344 13th St., Oakland, California 94612

calendar_today Opens: Apr 1
calendar_today Closes: Apr 5,

Reported On March 19th, 2024 by Lorena Bentley

The Hourly Wage Needed to Afford A Safe, Modest 2 Bed Apartment In Oakland, California
$49.05/hour
$33.05 (+207%) more than California minimum wage and $41.80 (+577%) more than the Federal minimum wage.
Learn More About Oakland, California Affordable Housing ↓

What HUD offices serve Oakland, 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), Public Housing, Moving to Work, Veteran Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH), Section 8 Project-Based Voucher (PBV), Mainstream Voucher, Moderate Rehabilitation, Homeownership, Family Unification Program (FUP), Shelter Plus Care programs for Oakland, California.
Operates the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV), Public Housing programs for Oakland, California.

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

How many renters live in Oakland, California?

The City of Oakland has 430,531 people living in 178,778 households.

There are 222,862 renters living in 100,787 renter households in this City. Renters make up 51.76 percent of the population living in Oakland.

What is the rental market like in Oakland, California?

There are an estimated 195,256 housing units in the Oakland area. Of these, 108,480 units are rental homes, making up 56 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Oakland, California, there are 1 rental units.

What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Oakland?

The rental vacancy rate in Oakland is 7 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 Oakland for each bedroom size?

Occupied Rental Units by Size in Oakland
Studio One-Bedroom Two-Bedroom Three-Bedroom Four+ Bedrooms
13,952 36,433 32,076 13,772 3,024
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Oakland

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

Among renter households in this market, 50 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 29 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 Oakland

Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $1,825 to $3,954. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.

Bed Size 2024 Fair Market Rents
Studio $1,825
One BR $2,131
Two BR $2,590
Three BR $3,342
Four BR $3,954
2024 Fair Market Rents in Oakland, California

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

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 6,749 48 percent
One BR 15,186 42 percent
Two BR 8,278 26 percent
Rental Units Below FMR in Oakland, California

How many affordable rental units are in Oakland?

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

Federal Program Unit Count
Low Income Housing Tax Credit 8,174
Public Housing 1,449
Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance 3,808
Mod Rehab Project-Based Rental Assistance 94
Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly 322
Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities 77
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Oakland, California

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

Income Based Apartments in Oakland, California

Oakland features 7,155 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 Oakland, California

There are 5,982 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Oakland.

Housing Choice Vouchers in Oakland, California

On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Oakland landlords $1,400 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $500 towards rent in Oakland.

The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Oakland, California for a two-bedroom apartment is between $2,331 and $2,849.

Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.