What HUD offices serve Worcester 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 Worcester County.
How many renters live in Worcester County, Massachusetts?
The County of Worcester County has 862,927 people living in 338,087 households.
There are 261,035 renters living in 123,064 renter households in this County. Renters make up 30.25 percent of the population living in Worcester County.
What is the rental market like in Worcester County, Massachusetts?
There are an estimated 355,687 housing units in the Worcester County area. Of these, 128,021 units are rental homes, making up 36 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Worcester County, Massachusetts, there are 1 rental units.
What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Worcester County?
The rental vacancy rate in Worcester 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 Worcester County for each bedroom size?
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Worcester County
| Studio | One-Bedroom | Two-Bedroom | Three-Bedroom | Four+ Bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4,951 | 35,707 | 45,128 | 29,895 | 5,937 |
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Worcester County
A large number of apartments in Worcester 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 Worcester County are overburdened by housing costs?
Among renter households in this market, 50 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 26 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 Worcester 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 | 100 percent | |
| One BR | 100 percent | |
| Two BR | 100 percent |
Rental Units Below FMR in Worcester County, Massachusetts
How many affordable rental units are in Worcester County?
There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Worcester County, Massachusetts including the following:
| Federal Program | Unit Count |
| Low Income Housing Tax Credit | 5,120 |
| Public Housing | 3,050 |
| Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance | 5,534 |
| Mod Rehab Project-Based Rental Assistance | 192 |
| Section 236 Rental Assistance | 1,213 |
| Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly | 240 |
| Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities | 8 |
| USDA Section 515 Rural Rental Housing | 404 |
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Worcester County, Massachusetts
Rental units may be funded in part by multiple federal programs.
Income Based Apartments in Worcester County, Massachusetts
Worcester County features 11,745 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 Worcester County, Massachusetts
There are 2,476 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Worcester County.
Housing Choice Vouchers in Worcester County, Massachusetts
On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Worcester County landlords $800 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $400 towards rent in Worcester County.
The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Worcester County, Massachusetts for a two-bedroom apartment is between $0 and $0.
Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.
