What HUD offices serve Essex County, Massachusetts?
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 Massachusetts Public Housing and Low-Income Apartments Waiting Lists page for openings near Essex County.
How many renters live in Essex County, Massachusetts?
The County of Essex County has 806,765 people living in 314,003 households.
There are 255,703 renters living in 112,915 renter households in this County. Renters make up 31.69 percent of the population living in Essex County.
What is the rental market like in Essex County, Massachusetts?
There are an estimated 330,161 housing units in the Essex County area. Of these, 117,574 units are rental homes, making up 36 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Essex County, Massachusetts, there are 1 rental units.
What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Essex County?
The rental vacancy rate in Essex County is 3 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 Essex County for each bedroom size?
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Essex County
| Studio | One-Bedroom | Two-Bedroom | Three-Bedroom | Four+ Bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7,190 | 34,762 | 41,983 | 21,600 | 5,582 |
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Essex County
A large number of apartments in Essex 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 Essex County are overburdened by housing costs?
Among renter households in this market, 56 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 many units are rented at Fair Market Rent (FMR) in Essex 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 | 0 | 100 percent |
| One BR | 0 | 100 percent |
| Two BR | 0 | 100 percent |
Rental Units Below FMR in Essex County, Massachusetts
How many affordable rental units are in Essex County?
There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Essex County, Massachusetts including the following:
| Federal Program | Unit Count |
| Low Income Housing Tax Credit | 4,435 |
| Public Housing | 2,233 |
| Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance | 6,462 |
| Mod Rehab Project-Based Rental Assistance | 203 |
| Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly | 297 |
| Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities | 167 |
| USDA Section 515 Rural Rental Housing | 338 |
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Essex County, Massachusetts
Rental units may be funded in part by multiple federal programs.
Income Based Apartments in Essex County, Massachusetts
Essex County features 10,069 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 Essex County, Massachusetts
There are 4,048 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Essex County.
Housing Choice Vouchers in Essex County, Massachusetts
On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Essex County landlords $1,000 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $400 towards rent in Essex County.
The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Essex County, Massachusetts for a two-bedroom apartment is between $0 and $0.
Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.
