What HUD offices serve Shelby County, Tennessee?
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 Tennessee Public Housing and Low-Income Apartments Waiting Lists page for openings near Shelby County.
How many renters live in Shelby County, Tennessee?
The County of Shelby County has 916,371 people living in 362,643 households.
There are 387,041 renters living in 164,714 renter households in this County. Renters make up 42.24 percent of the population living in Shelby County.
What is the rental market like in Shelby County, Tennessee?
There are an estimated 402,687 housing units in the Shelby County area. Of these, 182,609 units are rental homes, making up 45 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Shelby County, Tennessee, there are 1 rental units.
What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Shelby County?
The rental vacancy rate in Shelby County is 9 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 Shelby County for each bedroom size?
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Shelby County
| Studio | One-Bedroom | Two-Bedroom | Three-Bedroom | Four+ Bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5,668 | 32,075 | 60,612 | 53,782 | 9,990 |
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Shelby County
A large number of apartments in Shelby 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 Shelby County are overburdened by housing costs?
Among renter households in this market, 51 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 25 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 Shelby County
Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $1,031 to $1,995. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.
| Bed Size | 2024 Fair Market Rents |
| Studio | $1,031 |
| One BR | $1,146 |
| Two BR | $1,298 |
| Three BR | $1,711 |
| Four BR | $1,995 |
2024 Fair Market Rents in Shelby County, Tennessee
How many units are rented at Fair Market Rent (FMR) in Shelby 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 | 3,866 | 68 percent |
| One BR | 19,461 | 61 percent |
| Two BR | 39,391 | 65 percent |
Rental Units Below FMR in Shelby County, Tennessee
How many affordable rental units are in Shelby County?
There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Shelby County, Tennessee including the following:
| Federal Program | Unit Count |
| Low Income Housing Tax Credit | 16,009 |
| Public Housing | 1,585 |
| Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance | 6,723 |
| Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly | 488 |
| Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities | 138 |
| USDA Section 515 Rural Rental Housing | 67 |
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Shelby County, Tennessee
Rental units may be funded in part by multiple federal programs.
Income Based Apartments in Shelby County, Tennessee
Shelby County features 9,404 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 Shelby County, Tennessee
There are 12,797 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Shelby County.
Housing Choice Vouchers in Shelby County, Tennessee
On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Shelby County landlords $700 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $300 towards rent in Shelby County.
The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Shelby County, Tennessee for a two-bedroom apartment is between $1,168 and $1,428.
Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.
