What HUD offices serve Winston Salem, North Carolina?
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 North Carolina Public Housing and Low-Income Apartments Waiting Lists page for openings near Winston Salem.
How many renters live in Winston Salem, North Carolina?
The City of Winston Salem has 251,343 people living in 100,769 households.
There are 100,074 renters living in 45,863 renter households in this City. Renters make up 39.82 percent of the population living in Winston Salem.
What is the rental market like in Winston Salem, North Carolina?
There are an estimated 114,796 housing units in the Winston Salem area. Of these, 51,308 units are rental homes, making up 45 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Winston Salem, North Carolina, there are 1 rental units.
What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Winston Salem?
The rental vacancy rate in Winston Salem is 10 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 Winston Salem for each bedroom size?
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Winston Salem
| Studio | One-Bedroom | Two-Bedroom | Three-Bedroom | Four+ Bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,376 | 9,487 | 19,382 | 13,808 | 1,738 |
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Winston Salem
A large number of apartments in Winston Salem 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 Winston Salem 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 Winston Salem
Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $897 to $1,671. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.
| Bed Size | 2024 Fair Market Rents |
| Studio | $897 |
| One BR | $936 |
| Two BR | $1,110 |
| Three BR | $1,452 |
| Four BR | $1,671 |
2024 Fair Market Rents in Winston Salem, North Carolina
How many units are rented at Fair Market Rent (FMR) in Winston Salem?
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 | 666 | 48 percent |
| One BR | 5,565 | 59 percent |
| Two BR | 11,404 | 59 percent |
Rental Units Below FMR in Winston Salem, North Carolina
How many affordable rental units are in Winston Salem?
There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Winston Salem, North Carolina including the following:
| Federal Program | Unit Count |
| Low Income Housing Tax Credit | 3,178 |
| Public Housing | 1,439 |
| Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance | 1,308 |
| Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly | 231 |
| Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities | 56 |
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Winston Salem, North Carolina
Rental units may be funded in part by multiple federal programs.
Income Based Apartments in Winston Salem, North Carolina
Winston Salem features 3,077 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 Winston Salem, North Carolina
There are 2,145 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Winston Salem.
Housing Choice Vouchers in Winston Salem, North Carolina
On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Winston Salem landlords $600 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $300 towards rent in Winston Salem.
The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Winston Salem, North Carolina for a two-bedroom apartment is between $999 and $1,221.
Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.
