County FMR · HUD FY2026

Callaway County Fair Market Rent

HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent for Callaway County, MO - 17% below the US average.

$794
1-bedroom FMR
$1,042
2-bedroom FMR
+4.3%
YoY change
-17%
vs US avg

The verdict

Callaway is the 26th most expensive of 116 counties in Missouri by 2-bedroom FMR; nationally it ranks #1,510 most expensive of 3,145 HUD counties.

#1,510
most expensive of 3,145 US counties (2BR)
#26
most expensive of 116 in Missouri (2BR)
+2%
vs the state average
$31,760
income to afford it (30% rule)

Software Developers spend the smallest share of income on rent here (8.3%), while Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary spend the most (32.8%).

FY 2026 HUD Fair Market Rent for Callaway County, MO. Verify with HUD →

HUD sets the FY 2026 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent for Callaway County, Missouri at $794 per month - the federal rental-assistance benchmark for this county. A 2-bedroom costs $1,042/mo and a studio is $789/mo. This is 17% lower than the national average of $959 and 2% above the Missouri average of $777.

Rent increased4.3% from FY 2025 ($761), outpacing inflation. The 30% affordability floor is comparatively reachable here at $31,760/year.

Observed renter burden: 31.4% of the 3,833 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 Missouri. Population: 44,517. Population has held roughly steady over the past five years (-0.7%, Census ACS). That's slower than Missouri's statewide growth of +1.3% over the same period.

FMR filing desk

Area CALLAWAY·COUNTY·MO·MO

Callaway County, MO: $794/mo 1BR · #1510 of 3145 counties (2BR) · FY2026

  • FMR-AREA MO
  • 1BR-FMR $794
  • 2BR-FMR $1,042
  • RANK-MID #1,510
  • YOY-UP +4.3%
  • VSUS-BELOW -17%
  • VS-ST-NEAR +2% MO
  • INC-ROOM 13%
  • POP-SMALL 45K
  • PHOTO-NEAR St. Louis County
  • VOUCH-90-110 $715–$873
  • FY-2026 FY2026

Photo-finish peer: St. Louis ($201 1BR gap)

Read with: Section 8 housing guide

Fair Market Rents (2026)

Studio
State avg: $734 · US avg: $893
$789/mo
↑ 4.4% YoY +7% vs state -12% vs US
1 Bedroom
State avg: $777 · US avg: $959
$794/mo
↑ 4.3% YoY +2% vs state -17% vs US
2 Bedroom
State avg: $972 · US avg: $1,175
$1,042/mo
↑ 4.4% YoY +7% vs state -11% vs US
3 Bedroom
State avg: $1,268 · US avg: $1,525
$1,249/mo
↑ 3.9% YoY -1% vs state -18% vs US
4 Bedroom
State avg: $1,460 · US avg: $1,756
$1,472/mo
↑ 3.7% YoY +1% vs state -16% vs US

Year-over-Year Comparison

Bedrooms FY 2025 FY 2026 Change
Studio $756
$789
+$33 (+4.4%)
1 Bedroom $761
$794
+$33 (+4.3%)
2 Bedroom $998
$1,042
+$44 (+4.4%)
3 Bedroom $1,202
$1,249
+$47 (+3.9%)
4 Bedroom $1,420
$1,472
+$52 (+3.7%)

Rent Burden Analysis

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

Studio
13%
Affordable
Need $31,560/yr for 30% rule
1 Bedroom
13.1%
Affordable
Need $31,760/yr for 30% rule
2 Bedroom
17.2%
Affordable
Need $41,680/yr for 30% rule
3 Bedroom
20.6%
Affordable
Need $49,960/yr for 30% rule
4 Bedroom
24.3%
Affordable
Need $58,880/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%17.2%
Callaway County 2-bedroom rent burden
County median income: $72,645 · National avg burden: 21.7% ·View Missouri rent burden →

Where Callaway sits among every US county

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

$1,042 higher than 52% 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 Callaway compares on 1-bedroom rent

1-bedroom FMR vs other Missouri counties

1BR FMR / mo

What this shows Callaway is highlighted. Nearby Missouri counties by 1-bedroom FMR, highest to lowest: Jackson County ($1,197), Clay County ($1,197), St. Louis County ($995), St. Charles County ($995), St. Louis city ($995), Greene County ($883), Callaway County (this county) ($794).

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

Can Common Jobs Afford Rent Here?

With a below-average 1-bedroom at $794/mo, most of these Missouri occupations clear, or miss, the 30% affordability line.

Occupation MO Salary Rent Burden Verdict
Software Developers $114,550 8.3% Affordable
Registered Nurses $79,770 11.9% Affordable
General & Operations Managers $77,410 12.3% Affordable
Accountants & Auditors $73,210 13% Affordable
Electricians $70,950 13.4% Affordable
Police & Sheriff's Patrol Officers $60,720 15.7% Affordable
Paralegals & Legal Assistants $58,730 16.2% Affordable
Heavy & Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers $50,540 18.9% Affordable
Elementary School Teachers $48,250 19.7% Affordable
Customer Service Representatives $41,850 22.8% Affordable
Pharmacy Technicians $37,990 25.1% Affordable
Janitors & Cleaners $34,080 28% Affordable
Retail Salespersons $31,250 30.5% Stretched
Fast Food & Counter Workers $29,310 32.5% Stretched
Teaching Assistants $29,060 32.8% Stretched
Salaries: BLS OES (Missouri) median · 30% = affordable threshold · Try the salary calculator →

Rent Trends (2020–2026)

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

Over the 6-year span HUD has tracked for Callaway (FY 2020-2026), the 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent has risen 44.9% overall, from $548 to $794. The increases have been fairly steady year to year, with no single jump exceeding 11.8% (FY 2024).

$500$600$700$800$900 FY2020FY2021FY2022FY2023FY2024FY2025FY2026 $794
Callaway County 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent, FY2020–FY2026
Year Studio 1 BR 2 BR
FY 2026 ↑4.3% $789 $794 $1,042
FY 2025 ↑6.7% $756 $761 $998
FY 2024 ↑11.8% $708 $713 $937
FY 2023 ↑9.1% $634 $638 $840
FY 2022 ↑3.0% $581 $585 $770
FY 2021 ↑3.6% $564 $568 $748
FY 2020 $545 $548 $722
Total change (6yr): +44.9%
Annualized: +6.4%/yr
1 BR: $548 → $794

Part of the Jefferson City, MO Metro Area

Callaway County is a outlying county of the Jefferson City, MO metropolitan statistical area, alongside 3 other metro-area counties.

Callaway County ranks #1 of 4 counties in this metro area by 1-bedroom FMR. Every county sharing this metro, highest to lowest: Callaway County (this county) ($794), Moniteau County ($703), Cole County ($694), Osage County ($694).

Callaway County (this county)
1 BR: $794/mo
Moniteau County
1 BR: $703/mo
Cole County
1 BR: $694/mo
Osage County
1 BR: $694/mo

Nationwide peers by 2BR FMR & rent burden

Two PlainRent-derived comparison paths for Callaway County, both outside Missouri 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 MO (FY2026).

Dona Ana County
NM · 2 BR $1,042/mo
Hart County
GA · 2 BR $1,042/mo
Anderson County
KY · 2 BR $1,042/mo
Pierce County
GA · 2 BR $1,042/mo

Similar rent burden

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

Jefferson County
WI · 17.2% of income · 2 BR $1,156/mo
Clay County
IA · 17.2% of income · 2 BR $919/mo
Lake County
CO · 17.2% of income · 2 BR $1,343/mo
Rice County
MN · 17.2% of income · 2 BR $1,187/mo

Nearby Counties in Missouri

Largest counties by population in Missouri

Showing the 8 largest of 115 other counties in Missouri.

St. Louis County
1 BR: $995/mo Pop: 999,703
Jackson County
1 BR: $1,197/mo Pop: 715,526
St. Charles County
1 BR: $995/mo Pop: 406,262
Greene County
1 BR: $883/mo Pop: 299,188
St. Louis city
1 BR: $995/mo Pop: 298,018
Clay County
1 BR: $1,197/mo Pop: 253,085
Jefferson County
1 BR: $995/mo Pop: 226,984
Boone County
1 BR: $1,011/mo Pop: 184,043
View all counties in Missouri →

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average rent in Callaway County? ▼
The FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a 1-bedroom in Callaway County is $794 per month. A 2-bedroom is $1,042 and a studio is $789.
How does Callaway County rent compare to the national average? ▼
Rent in Callaway County is 17% below the national average. A 1-bedroom here costs $794 compared to $959 nationally.
Where does Callaway County rank nationally for Fair Market Rent? ▼
According to HUD's FY 2026 Fair Market Rent schedule, Callaway County's 2-bedroom FMR of $1,042 ranks #1,510 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 Callaway County? ▼
Based on the 30% affordability rule, you need an annual income of at least $31,760 ($2,647/month) to afford a 1-bedroom at Fair Market Rent in Callaway County.
Is rent going up or down in Callaway County? ▼
The 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent in Callaway County increased by 4.3% from FY 2025 to FY 2026, going from $761 to $794.
Which jobs can afford rent in Callaway County? ▼
Based on Missouri BLS salary data and the 30% affordability rule, jobs like Software Developers, Registered Nurses, General and Operations Managers can afford a 1-bedroom at $794/mo. 12 of 15 common occupations are affordable here.
How much has rent changed in Callaway County over time? ▼
The 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent in Callaway County went from $548 in FY 2020 to $794 in FY 2026, a total change of +44.9% over 6 years.
How does Fair Market Rent affect Section 8 vouchers in Callaway County? ▼
In Callaway County, the FY 2026 FMR of $794/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 Callaway County? ▼
For Callaway County, it's the specific 40th-percentile rent HUD publishes each year ($794/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.