County FMR · HUD FY2026

Brown County Fair Market Rent

HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent for Brown County, TX - 14% below the US average.

$823
1-bedroom FMR
$1,080
2-bedroom FMR
+8.1%
YoY change
-14%
vs US avg

The verdict

Brown is the 115th most expensive of 254 counties in Texas by 2-bedroom FMR; nationally it ranks #1,384 most expensive of 3,145 HUD counties; rent here has climbed 8.1% since FY 2025, a modest shift relative to most counties.

#1,384
most expensive of 3,145 US counties (2BR)
#115
most expensive of 254 in Texas (2BR)
-12%
vs the state average
$32,920
income to afford it (30% rule)

Software Developers spend the smallest share of income on rent here (7.6%), while Fast Food and Counter Workers spend the most (36.6%).

FY 2026 HUD Fair Market Rent for Brown County, TX. Verify with HUD →

The Fair Market Rent for a 1-bedroom apartment in Brown County, Texas is $823 per month in FY 2026, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). A 2-bedroom costs $1,080/mo and a studio is $792/mo. This is 14% lower than the national average of $959 and 12% below the Texas average of $935.

Rent increased8.1% from FY 2025 ($761), outpacing inflation. Under the 30% rule, affordability starts near $32,920/year for a 1-bedroom.

Observed renter burden: 46.3% of the 4,770 renter households counted by ACS paid at least 30% of income in gross rent. This ACS 2023 household measure is distinct from HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent benchmark above.

FY 2026 HUD Fair Market Rents in Texas. Population: 38,159. Population has held roughly steady over the past five years (+1.2%, Census ACS). That's slower than Texas's statewide growth of +6.3% over the same period.

FMR filing desk

Area BROWN·COUNTY·TX·TX

Brown County, TX: $823/mo 1BR · #1384 of 3145 counties (2BR) · FY2026

  • FMR-AREA TX
  • 1BR-FMR $823
  • 2BR-FMR $1,080
  • RANK-MID #1,384
  • YOY-SURGE +8.1%
  • VSUS-BELOW -14%
  • VS-ST-LOW -12% TX
  • INC-ROOM 18%
  • POP-SMALL 38K
  • PHOTO-NEAR Harris County
  • VOUCH-90-110 $741–$905
  • FY-2026 FY2026

Photo-finish peer: Harris ($500 1BR gap)

Read with: How Fair Market Rent works

Fair Market Rents (2026)

Studio
State avg: $887 · US avg: $893
$792/mo
↑ 14.8% YoY -11% vs state -11% vs US
1 Bedroom
State avg: $935 · US avg: $959
$823/mo
↑ 8.1% YoY -12% vs state -14% vs US
2 Bedroom
State avg: $1,149 · US avg: $1,175
$1,080/mo
↑ 8.1% YoY -6% vs state -8% vs US
3 Bedroom
State avg: $1,497 · US avg: $1,525
$1,362/mo
↑ 6.9% YoY -9% vs state -11% vs US
4 Bedroom
State avg: $1,733 · US avg: $1,756
$1,619/mo
↑ 10.4% YoY -7% vs state -8% vs US

Year-over-Year Comparison

Bedrooms FY 2025 FY 2026 Change
Studio $690
$792
+$102 (+14.8%)
1 Bedroom $761
$823
+$62 (+8.1%)
2 Bedroom $999
$1,080
+$81 (+8.1%)
3 Bedroom $1,274
$1,362
+$88 (+6.9%)
4 Bedroom $1,467
$1,619
+$152 (+10.4%)

Rent Burden Analysis

How much of household income goes to rent in Brown County. The 30% threshold indicates cost burden.

Studio
17.2%
Affordable
Need $31,680/yr for 30% rule
1 Bedroom
17.9%
Affordable
Need $32,920/yr for 30% rule
2 Bedroom
23.4%
Affordable
Need $43,200/yr for 30% rule
3 Bedroom
29.6%
Affordable
Need $54,480/yr for 30% rule
4 Bedroom
35.1%
Burdened
Need $64,760/yr for 30% rule
How we calculate this

Rent burden = (FMR × 12) ÷ county median household income. Required income = (FMR × 12) ÷ 0.3, the federal 30%-of-gross-income rule HUD uses to define cost burden. Median household income is from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey; FMR is from HUD's FY2026 release. See methodology.

0%100%National avg22%23.4%
Brown County 2-bedroom rent burden
County median income: $55,305 · National avg burden: 21.7% ·View Texas rent burden →

Where Brown sits among every US county

2-bedroom Fair Market Rent vs. all 3,145 HUD counties

$1,080 higher than 56% of 3,145 counties

$600–$800: 23 counties (1%). Below this entry. $800–$1,000: 1,406 counties (45%). Below this entry. $1,000–$1,200: 723 counties (23%). This entry sits in this band. $1,200–$1,400: 417 counties (13%). Above this entry. $1,400–$1,600: 181 counties (6%). Above this entry. $1,600–$1,800: 172 counties (5%). Above this entry. $1,800–$2,000: 108 counties (3%). Above this entry. $2,000–$2,200: 29 counties (1%). Above this entry. $2,200–$2,400: 40 counties (1%). Above this entry. $2,400–$2,600: 13 counties (0%). Above this entry. $2,600–$2,800: 9 counties (0%). Above this entry. $2,800–$3,000: 15 counties (0%). Above this entry. $3,000–$3,200: 3 counties (0%). Above this entry. $3,200–$3,400: 1 counties (0%). Above this entry. $3,400–$3,600: 1 counties (0%). Above this entry. $3,600–$3,800: 3 counties (0%). Above this entry. $3,800–$4,000: 0 counties (0%). Above this entry. $4,000–$4,200: 0 counties (0%). Above this entry. $4,200–$4,400: 1 counties (0%). Above this entry. This county $600 $4,400 every US county, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $0.2K-wide band; taller bars hold more counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents · FY2026

How Brown compares on 1-bedroom rent

1-bedroom FMR vs other Texas counties

1BR FMR / mo

What this shows Brown is highlighted. Nearby Texas counties by 1-bedroom FMR, highest to lowest: Dallas County ($1,648), Collin County ($1,648), Travis County ($1,562), Tarrant County ($1,473), Harris County ($1,323), Bexar County ($1,177), Brown County (this county) ($823).

Source U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) As of FY2026

Can Common Jobs Afford Rent Here?

How a 1-bedroom at $823/mo compares to Texas salaries for popular occupations (BLS wage data, 30%-of-income rule).

Occupation TX Salary Rent Burden Verdict
Software Developers $130,500 7.6% Affordable
General & Operations Managers $100,290 9.8% Affordable
Registered Nurses $90,010 11% Affordable
Accountants & Auditors $80,000 12.3% Affordable
Police & Sheriff's Patrol Officers $76,350 12.9% Affordable
Elementary School Teachers $61,380 16.1% Affordable
Paralegals & Legal Assistants $59,700 16.5% Affordable
Electricians $56,920 17.4% Affordable
Heavy & Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers $53,070 18.6% Affordable
Pharmacy Technicians $43,920 22.5% Affordable
Customer Service Representatives $39,100 25.3% Affordable
Janitors & Cleaners $31,230 31.6% Stretched
Retail Salespersons $30,130 32.8% Stretched
Teaching Assistants $27,630 35.7% Stretched
Fast Food & Counter Workers $27,000 36.6% Stretched
Salaries: BLS OES (Texas) median · 30% = affordable threshold · Try the salary calculator →

Rent Trends (2020–2026)

7-year Fair Market Rent history for Brown County. Shows how HUD rental rates have changed over time.

Over the 6-year span HUD has tracked for Brown (FY 2020-2026), the 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent has risen 38.6% overall, from $594 to $823. Most of that movement was gradual except for a single sharp jump of +18.5% in FY 2024, well above this county's typical year-to-year change.

$500$600$700$800$900 FY2020FY2021FY2022FY2023FY2024FY2025FY2026 $823
Brown County 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent, FY2020–FY2026
Year Studio 1 BR 2 BR
FY 2026 ↑8.1% $792 $823 $1,080
FY 2025 ↓7.2% $690 $761 $999
FY 2024 ↑18.5% $731 $820 $1,078
FY 2023 ↑6.8% $609 $692 $911
FY 2022 ↑2.7% $567 $648 $853
FY 2021 ↑6.2% $528 $631 $801
FY 2020 $500 $594 $729
Total change (6yr): +38.6%
Annualized: +5.6%/yr
1 BR: $594 → $823

Part of the Brownwood, TX Micro Area

Brown County is a central county of the Brownwood, TX micropolitan statistical area.

Nationwide peers by 2BR FMR & rent burden

Two PlainRent-derived comparison paths for Brown County, both outside Texas so the link neighborhoods are not the same-state geography lattice above. Axes stay disjoint: burden peers exclude the FMR peer set.

Similar 2-bedroom FMR

Nearest HUD 2BR Fair Market Rents outside TX (FY2026).

Dodge County
WI · 2 BR $1,080/mo
Deer Lodge County
MT · 2 BR $1,080/mo
La Salle County
IL · 2 BR $1,079/mo
Steuben County
NY · 2 BR $1,081/mo

Similar rent burden

Nearest 2BR FMR as a share of median household income (outside TX).

Curry County
NM · 23.4% of income · 2 BR $1,098/mo
Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area
AK · 23.4% of income · 2 BR $1,153/mo
Crawford County
IN · 23.4% of income · 2 BR $956/mo
Adair County
OK · 23.4% of income · 2 BR $937/mo

Nearby Counties in Texas

Largest counties by population in Texas

Showing the 8 largest of 253 other counties in Texas.

Harris County
1 BR: $1,323/mo Pop: 4,726,177
Dallas County
1 BR: $1,648/mo Pop: 2,604,053
Tarrant County
1 BR: $1,473/mo Pop: 2,113,854
Bexar County
1 BR: $1,177/mo Pop: 2,014,059
Travis County
1 BR: $1,562/mo Pop: 1,289,054
Collin County
1 BR: $1,648/mo Pop: 1,079,153
Denton County
1 BR: $1,648/mo Pop: 914,870
Hidalgo County
1 BR: $847/mo Pop: 873,167
View all counties in Texas →

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average rent in Brown County? ▼
The FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a 1-bedroom in Brown County is $823 per month. A 2-bedroom is $1,080 and a studio is $792.
How does Brown County rent compare to the national average? ▼
Rent in Brown County is 14% below the national average. A 1-bedroom here costs $823 compared to $959 nationally.
Where does Brown County rank nationally for Fair Market Rent? ▼
According to HUD's FY 2026 Fair Market Rent schedule, Brown County's 2-bedroom FMR of $1,080 ranks #1,384 most expensive among 3,145 HUD counties, placing it in the middle half of HUD counties.
What income do I need to afford rent in Brown County? ▼
Based on the 30% affordability rule, you need an annual income of at least $32,920 ($2,743/month) to afford a 1-bedroom at Fair Market Rent in Brown County.
Is rent going up or down in Brown County? ▼
The 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent in Brown County increased by 8.1% from FY 2025 to FY 2026, going from $761 to $823.
Which jobs can afford rent in Brown County? ▼
Based on Texas BLS salary data and the 30% affordability rule, jobs like Software Developers, General and Operations Managers, Registered Nurses can afford a 1-bedroom at $823/mo. 11 of 15 common occupations are affordable here.
How much has rent changed in Brown County over time? ▼
The 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent in Brown County went from $594 in FY 2020 to $823 in FY 2026, a total change of +38.6% over 6 years.
How does Fair Market Rent affect Section 8 vouchers in Brown County? ▼
In Brown County, the FY 2026 FMR of $823/mo for a 1-bedroom sets the baseline that local housing authorities use for Section 8 payment standards.
What does Fair Market Rent mean for Brown County? ▼
For Brown County, it's the specific 40th-percentile rent HUD publishes each year ($823/mo for a 1-bedroom in FY 2026).

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau and HUD Fair Market Rents. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

All federal data sources used on this page
  • HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR) - county-level fair-market rent estimates by bedroom count. huduser.gov/datasets/fmr
  • HUD Income Limits - area median income for affordability calculations. huduser.gov/datasets/il
  • HUD Comprehensive Housing Affordability Strategy (CHAS) - rent burden and housing-cost distribution. huduser.gov/datasets/cp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - county and metro housing characteristics + median rent. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • BLS Consumer Price Index, Rent of Primary Residence - rent inflation by metro. bls.gov/cpi
  • IRS Migration Data (SOI) - interstate migration aggregates affecting county demand. irs.gov/statistics/migration
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics - state-level median wages by occupation, used for job affordability analysis. bls.gov/oes

Every figure on PlainRent is rendered directly from HUD's published Fair Market Rent records, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of FY 2026.