Low Income Apartments and Affordable Housing For Rent in Forest City, IA

Discover affordable housing in Forest City where there are 3+ 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.

Town Square Apartments

127 Winnebago Way / 136 West I Street, Forest City, Iowa 50436

Winngate Village

101 Westgate Dr, Forest City, Iowa 50436

New Life Estates

145 Westgate Drive, Forest City, Iowa

calendar_today Opened: Apr 10
Open Until Further Notice

Reported On February 23rd, 2024 by Nathan Brunet

The Hourly Wage Needed to Afford A Safe, Modest 2 Bed Apartment In Forest City, Iowa
$16.33/hour
$9.08 (+125%) more than Iowa minimum wage and $9.08 (+125%) more than the Federal minimum wage.
Learn More About Forest City, Iowa Affordable Housing ↓

What HUD offices serve Forest City, Iowa?

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 Public Housing programs for Forest City, Iowa.

Go to the Iowa Public Housing and Low-Income Apartments Waiting Lists page for openings near Forest City.

How many renters live in Forest City, Iowa?

The City of Forest City has 4,254 people living in 1,580 households.

There are 861 renters living in 444 renter households in this City. Renters make up 20.24 percent of the population living in Forest City.

What is the rental market like in Forest City, Iowa?

There are an estimated 1,827 housing units in the Forest City area. Of these, 543 units are rental homes, making up 30 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Forest City, Iowa, there are 1 rental units.

What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Forest City?

The rental vacancy rate in Forest City is 14 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 Forest City for each bedroom size?

Occupied Rental Units by Size in Forest City
Studio One-Bedroom Two-Bedroom Three-Bedroom Four+ Bedrooms
0 84 189 151 20
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Forest City

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

Among renter households in this market, 37 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 13 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 Forest City

Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $630 to $1,463. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.

Bed Size 2024 Fair Market Rents
Studio $630
One BR $700
Two BR $862
Three BR $1,183
Four BR $1,463
2024 Fair Market Rents in Forest City, Iowa

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

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
One BR 72 86 percent
Two BR 146 77 percent
Rental Units Below FMR in Forest City, Iowa

How many affordable rental units are in Forest City?

There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Forest City, Iowa including the following:

Federal Program Unit Count
Low Income Housing Tax Credit 40
Public Housing 17
Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance 49
USDA Section 515 Rural Rental Housing 36
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Forest City, Iowa

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

Income Based Apartments in Forest City, Iowa

Forest City features 61 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 Forest City, Iowa

There are 16 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Forest City.

Housing Choice Vouchers in Forest City, Iowa

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

The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Forest City, Iowa for a two-bedroom apartment is between $776 and $948.

Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.