See the rent that fits your income under the 30% guideline, whether you would pass a typical landlord income test, and what your take-home budget looks like after rent and other costs.
These are planning estimates, not a lending or eligibility decision. Landlord screening, local fee rules, and program formulas vary.
A household earns $3,200 a month before taxes and expects $140 for utilities. 30% of income is $960, so the rent target is about $820. At 3× rent, the same income passes for rents up to about $1,067. Rent plus utilities above $1,600 would be a severe cost burden.
Read the full guide: How much rent can I afford?
No. It is a planning benchmark. HUD and researchers describe households paying more than 30% of income for housing as cost-burdened and more than 50% as severely cost-burdened. Subsidized programs such as Section 8 and public housing set the tenant’s share using a formula based on roughly 30% of adjusted income.
The 30% benchmark and most landlord income tests use gross (before-tax) income. The take-home budget in this calculator shows whether the rent still leaves room for your other costs, which is often the more realistic test.
Your share of rent is set by the housing agency, not by this calculator. Use the Section 8 rent calculator with your agency’s income figures, payment standard, and utility allowance instead.
Apply to income-based programs (Section 8, public housing, and project-based apartments), check tax credit apartments and city lotteries, consider shared housing, and lower other bills with LIHEAP, Lifeline, and SNAP. Our guide to comparing housing programs explains where to apply.
