The fair market rent levels that will be in place from October 1, 2014 through September 30, 2015 are now available on the Vermont Housing Data website.
HUD’s fair market rent levels are estimates of the monthly rent level within which 40 percent of standard quality rental units in an area are rented. For example, the current fair market rent of $793 for a 1-bedroom apartment in Washington County means that HUD estimates that approximately 40 percent of comparable units in that county cost rent for less than $793.
Current fair market rents in Vermont are based primarily on an equation HUD applies to each county’s rent estimates from the American Community Survey. Since this survey includes a very small number of Vermont residents, fair market rents for some areas may fluctuate quite a bit from year to year.
If the fair market rents proposed for a county appear to be out of line with local data, HUD may be asked to reconsider these rents. This summer VHFA , with the Vermont State Housing Authority and several other organizations, commissioned a rent survey of Windham, Windsor and Bennington counties. As a result, the Fair Market Rent levels effective last month reflect the more accurate local data gathered for these counties.
In addition to fair market rents, HUD’s estimates of median rents were also uploaded to the Vermont Housing Data site.