What HUD offices serve Palmdale, 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 Palmdale.
How many renters live in Palmdale, California?
The City of Palmdale has 163,455 people living in 45,574 households.
There are 42,604 renters living in 13,237 renter households in this City. Renters make up 26.06 percent of the population living in Palmdale.
What is the rental market like in Palmdale, California?
There are an estimated 48,737 housing units in the Palmdale area. Of these, 16,509 units are rental homes, making up 34 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Palmdale, California, there are 1 rental units.
What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Palmdale?
The rental vacancy rate in Palmdale is 5 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 Palmdale for each bedroom size?
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Palmdale
| Studio | One-Bedroom | Two-Bedroom | Three-Bedroom | Four+ Bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 | 2,156 | 4,083 | 5,526 | 2,796 |
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Palmdale
A large number of apartments in Palmdale 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 Palmdale are overburdened by housing costs?
Among renter households in this market, 58 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 41 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 Palmdale
Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $1,777 to $3,600. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.
| Bed Size | 2024 Fair Market Rents |
| Studio | $1,777 |
| One BR | $2,006 |
| Two BR | $2,544 |
| Three BR | $3,263 |
| Four BR | $3,600 |
2024 Fair Market Rents in Palmdale, California
How many units are rented at Fair Market Rent (FMR) in Palmdale?
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 | 375 | 75 percent |
| One BR | 1,688 | 78 percent |
| Two BR | 2,340 | 57 percent |
Rental Units Below FMR in Palmdale, California
How many affordable rental units are in Palmdale?
There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Palmdale, California including the following:
| Federal Program | Unit Count |
| Low Income Housing Tax Credit | 1,585 |
| Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance | 559 |
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Palmdale, California
Rental units may be funded in part by multiple federal programs.
Income Based Apartments in Palmdale, California
Palmdale features 621 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 Palmdale, California
There are 1,715 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Palmdale.
Housing Choice Vouchers in Palmdale, California
On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Palmdale landlords $1,100 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $500 towards rent in Palmdale.
The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Palmdale, California for a two-bedroom apartment is between $2,290 and $2,798.
Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.
