Low Income Apartments and Affordable Housing For Rent in Polk County, IA

Discover affordable housing in Polk County where there are 180+ 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.

Southridge Senior Residences

1100 Cummins Rd, Des Moines, Iowa 50315

Centennial Place I

720 8th St SE, Altoona, Iowa 50009

Stone Crest Apartments

3330 E 25th St, Des Moines, Iowa 50317

The Apartments of Owl Creek

725 SW Ankeny Rd, Ankeny, Iowa 50023

Apartments of River Trace

1717 6th Avenue, Des Moines, Iowa 50314

Frank W Smith Retirement Center

2100 Beaver Ave, Des Moines, Iowa 50310

Uplift Manor Apartments

2916 30th St, Des Moines, Iowa 50310

Ahepa 192 Apartments

6190 NW 59th Ct, Johnston, Iowa 50131

Ahepa Penelope 38 Apartments

717 NE 5th St, Ankeny, Iowa 50021

Wakonda Manor

1800 Watrous Ave, Des Moines, Iowa 50315

Elkhart Park

401 South Grant Avenue, Elkhart, Iowa 50073

Norwalk Park

918 East17th Street, Norwalk, Iowa 50211

Oakridge Neighborhood ( Homes of Oakridge )

1236 Oakridge Dr, Des Moines, Iowa 50314

River Hills Apartments 2

916 E 6th St, Des Moines, Iowa 50316

Melbourne Apartments

5515 SE 14th St, Des Moines, Iowa 50320

Willow Bend Apartments

6616 SW 9th St, Des Moines, Iowa 50315

Royal View Manor

1101 Crocker St, Des Moines, Iowa 50309

Eastview Manor

3700 E 31st St, Des Moines, Iowa 50317

South View Manor

2417 SouthWest 9th Street Des Moines, IA , Des Moines, Iowa 50315

Johnston Crossing

5409 NW Johnston Dr., Johnston, Iowa 50131

The Hourly Wage Needed to Afford A Safe, Modest 2 Bed Apartment In Polk County, Iowa
$20.45/hour
$13.20 (+182%) more than Iowa minimum wage and $13.20 (+182%) more than the Federal minimum wage.
Learn More About Polk County, Iowa Affordable Housing ↓

What HUD offices serve Polk County, 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 Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV), Public Housing, Family Self-Sufficiency, Emergency Housing Voucher (EHV) programs for Polk County, Iowa.

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

How many renters live in Polk County, Iowa?

The County of Polk County has 501,089 people living in 207,290 households.

There are 125,985 renters living in 64,667 renter households in this County. Renters make up 25.14 percent of the population living in Polk County.

What is the rental market like in Polk County, Iowa?

There are an estimated 219,058 housing units in the Polk County area. Of these, 67,958 units are rental homes, making up 31 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Polk County, Iowa, there are 1 rental units.

What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Polk County?

The rental vacancy rate in Polk 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 Polk County for each bedroom size?

Occupied Rental Units by Size in Polk County
Studio One-Bedroom Two-Bedroom Three-Bedroom Four+ Bedrooms
3,168 18,406 30,073 10,037 2,719
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Polk County

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

Among renter households in this market, 44 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 22 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 Polk County

Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $833 to $1,481. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.

Bed Size 2024 Fair Market Rents
Studio $833
One BR $899
Two BR $1,080
Three BR $1,477
Four BR $1,481
2024 Fair Market Rents in Polk County, Iowa

How many units are rented at Fair Market Rent (FMR) in Polk 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 1,830 58 percent
One BR 8,752 48 percent
Two BR 14,345 48 percent
Rental Units Below FMR in Polk County, Iowa

How many affordable rental units are in Polk County?

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

Federal Program Unit Count
Low Income Housing Tax Credit 7,198
Public Housing 424
Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance 1,594
Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly 216
Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities 51
USDA Section 515 Rural Rental Housing 144
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Polk County, Iowa

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

Income Based Apartments in Polk County, Iowa

Polk County features 3,174 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 Polk County, Iowa

There are 6,099 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Polk County.

Housing Choice Vouchers in Polk County, Iowa

On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Polk County landlords $500 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $300 towards rent in Polk County.

The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Polk County, Iowa for a two-bedroom apartment is between $972 and $1,188.

Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.