County FMR · HUD FY2026

Clay County Fair Market Rent

HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent for Clay County, TX - 4% below the US average.

$925
1-bedroom FMR
$1,136
2-bedroom FMR
+3.2%
YoY change
-4%
vs US avg

The verdict

Clay is the 84th most expensive of 254 counties in Texas by 2-bedroom FMR; nationally it ranks #1,164 most expensive of 3,145 HUD counties.

#1,164
most expensive of 3,145 US counties (2BR)
#84
most expensive of 254 in Texas (2BR)
-1%
vs the state average
$37,000
income to afford it (30% rule)

Software Developers spend the smallest share of income on rent here (8.5%), while Fast Food and Counter Workers spend the most (41.1%).

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

HUD sets the FY 2026 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent for Clay County, Texas at $925 per month - the federal rental-assistance benchmark for this county. A 2-bedroom costs $1,136/mo and a studio is $831/mo. This is 4% lower than the national average of $959 and 1% below the Texas average of $935.

Rent increased3.2% from FY 2025 ($896), outpacing inflation. Under the 30% rule, affordability starts near $37,000/year for a 1-bedroom.

Observed renter burden: 27.7% of the 823 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: 10,290. Population has held roughly steady over the past five years (+0.1%, Census ACS). That's slower than Texas's statewide growth of +6.3% over the same period.

FMR filing desk

Area CLAY·COUNTY·TX·TX

Clay County, TX: $925/mo 1BR · #1164 of 3145 counties (2BR) · FY2026

  • FMR-AREA TX
  • 1BR-FMR $925
  • 2BR-FMR $1,136
  • RANK-MID #1,164
  • YOY-UP +3.2%
  • VSUS-NEAR -4%
  • VS-ST-NEAR -1% TX
  • INC-ROOM 14%
  • POP-SMALL 10K
  • PHOTO-NEAR Harris County
  • VOUCH-90-110 $833–$1,018
  • FY-2026 FY2026

Photo-finish peer: Harris ($398 1BR gap)

Read with: How Fair Market Rent works

Fair Market Rents (2026)

Studio
State avg: $887 · US avg: $893
$831/mo
↑ 1.0% YoY -6% vs state -7% vs US
1 Bedroom
State avg: $935 · US avg: $959
$925/mo
↑ 3.2% YoY -1% vs state -4% vs US
2 Bedroom
State avg: $1,149 · US avg: $1,175
$1,136/mo
↑ 3.1% YoY -1% vs state -3% vs US
3 Bedroom
State avg: $1,497 · US avg: $1,525
$1,553/mo
↑ 3.1% YoY +4% vs state +2% vs US
4 Bedroom
State avg: $1,733 · US avg: $1,756
$1,759/mo
↑ 2.9% YoY +2% vs state +0% vs US

Year-over-Year Comparison

Bedrooms FY 2025 FY 2026 Change
Studio $823
$831
+$8 (+1.0%)
1 Bedroom $896
$925
+$29 (+3.2%)
2 Bedroom $1,102
$1,136
+$34 (+3.1%)
3 Bedroom $1,506
$1,553
+$47 (+3.1%)
4 Bedroom $1,709
$1,759
+$50 (+2.9%)

Rent Burden Analysis

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

Studio
12.9%
Affordable
Need $33,240/yr for 30% rule
1 Bedroom
14.3%
Affordable
Need $37,000/yr for 30% rule
2 Bedroom
17.6%
Affordable
Need $45,440/yr for 30% rule
3 Bedroom
24.1%
Affordable
Need $62,120/yr for 30% rule
4 Bedroom
27.3%
Affordable
Need $70,360/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%17.6%
Clay County 2-bedroom rent burden
County median income: $77,355 · National avg burden: 21.7% ·View Texas rent burden →

Where Clay sits among every US county

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

$1,136 Top 37% higher than 63% 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 Clay compares on 1-bedroom rent

1-bedroom FMR vs other Texas counties

1BR FMR / mo

What this shows Clay 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), Clay County (this county) ($925).

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

Can Common Jobs Afford Rent Here?

How a 1-bedroom at $925/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 8.5% Affordable
General & Operations Managers $100,290 11.1% Affordable
Registered Nurses $90,010 12.3% Affordable
Accountants & Auditors $80,000 13.9% Affordable
Police & Sheriff's Patrol Officers $76,350 14.5% Affordable
Elementary School Teachers $61,380 18.1% Affordable
Paralegals & Legal Assistants $59,700 18.6% Affordable
Electricians $56,920 19.5% Affordable
Heavy & Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers $53,070 20.9% Affordable
Pharmacy Technicians $43,920 25.3% Affordable
Customer Service Representatives $39,100 28.4% Affordable
Janitors & Cleaners $31,230 35.5% Stretched
Retail Salespersons $30,130 36.8% Stretched
Teaching Assistants $27,630 40.2% Stretched
Fast Food & Counter Workers $27,000 41.1% Stretched
Salaries: BLS OES (Texas) median · 30% = affordable threshold · Try the salary calculator →

Rent Trends (2020–2026)

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

Over the 6-year span HUD has tracked for Clay (FY 2020-2026), the 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent has risen 52.9% overall, from $605 to $925. The increases have been fairly steady year to year, with no single jump exceeding 9.3% (FY 2024).

$500$600$700$800$900$1,000 FY2020FY2021FY2022FY2023FY2024FY2025FY2026 $925
Clay County 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent, FY2020–FY2026
Year Studio 1 BR 2 BR
FY 2026 ↑3.2% $831 $925 $1,136
FY 2025 ↑6.3% $823 $896 $1,102
FY 2024 ↑9.3% $800 $843 $1,037
FY 2023 ↑9.1% $712 $771 $943
FY 2022 ↑7.8% $641 $707 $878
FY 2021 ↑8.4% $585 $656 $832
FY 2020 $525 $605 $784
Total change (6yr): +52.9%
Annualized: +7.3%/yr
1 BR: $605 → $925

Part of the Wichita Falls, TX Metro Area

Clay County is a outlying county of the Wichita Falls, TX metropolitan statistical area, alongside 2 other metro-area counties.

Clay County ranks #3 of 3 counties in this metro area by 1-bedroom FMR. Every county sharing this metro, highest to lowest: Wichita County ($925), Archer County ($925), Clay County (this county) ($925).

Wichita County
1 BR: $925/mo
Archer County
1 BR: $925/mo
Clay County (this county)
1 BR: $925/mo

Nationwide peers by 2BR FMR & rent burden

Two PlainRent-derived comparison paths for Clay 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).

Lee County
NC · 2 BR $1,136/mo
Marquette County
MI · 2 BR $1,137/mo
Hamblen County
TN · 2 BR $1,135/mo
Jefferson County
TN · 2 BR $1,135/mo

Similar rent burden

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

Nance County
NE · 17.6% of income · 2 BR $961/mo
Whitley County
IN · 17.6% of income · 2 BR $1,113/mo
Clark County
WI · 17.6% of income · 2 BR $973/mo
Carbon County
WY · 17.6% of income · 2 BR $980/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 Clay County? ▼
The FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a 1-bedroom in Clay County is $925 per month. A 2-bedroom is $1,136 and a studio is $831.
How does Clay County rent compare to the national average? ▼
Rent in Clay County is 4% below the national average. A 1-bedroom here costs $925 compared to $959 nationally.
Where does Clay County rank nationally for Fair Market Rent? ▼
According to HUD's FY 2026 Fair Market Rent schedule, Clay County's 2-bedroom FMR of $1,136 ranks #1,164 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 Clay County? ▼
Based on the 30% affordability rule, you need an annual income of at least $37,000 ($3,083/month) to afford a 1-bedroom at Fair Market Rent in Clay County.
Is rent going up or down in Clay County? ▼
The 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent in Clay County increased by 3.2% from FY 2025 to FY 2026, going from $896 to $925.
Which jobs can afford rent in Clay 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 $925/mo. 11 of 15 common occupations are affordable here.
How much has rent changed in Clay County over time? ▼
The 1-bedroom Fair Market Rent in Clay County went from $605 in FY 2020 to $925 in FY 2026, a total change of +52.9% over 6 years.
How does Fair Market Rent affect Section 8 vouchers in Clay County? ▼
In Clay County, the FY 2026 FMR of $925/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 Clay County? ▼
For Clay County, it's the specific 40th-percentile rent HUD publishes each year ($925/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.