Metro FMR · CBSA 13820 · HUD FY2026

Birmingham-Hoover, AL HUD Metro FMR Area Fair Market Rent

HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent for the Birmingham-Hoover, AL HUD Metro FMR Area metro area - 20% above the US average.

$1,155
1-bedroom FMR
$1,266
2-bedroom FMR
+1.0%
YoY change
+20%
vs US avg

The verdict

A 2-bedroom in the Birmingham-Hoover, AL HUD Metro FMR Area area rents at $1,266 under HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent - 8% above the US average, lower than 55% of the 387 metro areas HUD tracks.

#175
most affordable of 387 US metros (2BR)
+8%
vs the US 2-bedroom average
$50,640
income to afford it (30% rule)
+1.0%
1BR change, FY2025→2026

Affordability & income context

Birmingham-Hoover: #175 most affordable nationally · income context

At the metro's ACS median household income of $69,627, this 1-bedroom FMR takes 19.9% of annual income. It is well below the 30% affordability guide for a median-income household.

The 2-bedroom figure places Birmingham-Hoover in the middle half of HUD metro areas, using the same FY2026 HUD schedule as the national comparison.

With 1,179,346 residents, this is a large metro benchmark rather than a single-neighborhood rent quote.

Its 2-bedroom FMR sits in the middle half of HUD metro areas, so the local-income comparison is more informative than the national rank alone.

The studio-through-two-bedroom FMR bands stay below 30% of recorded median income here; the larger-bedroom rows show where that headroom narrows.

ACS median household income lags the FY2026 HUD FMR schedule. The income share is a same-metro cross-source read (Census ACS B19013 vs HUD FMR), not a same-vintage ratio.

Studio

$1,024/mo

17.6% of median income

1 Bedroom

$1,155/mo

19.9% of median income

2 Bedroom

$1,266/mo

21.8% of median income

3 Bedroom

$1,583/mo

27.3% of median income

4 Bedroom

$1,801/mo

31.0% of median income

FMR filing desk

CBSA CBSA·13820

Birmingham-Hoover: $1,155/mo 1BR · #175 of 387 metros (2BR) · FY2026 CBSA 13820

  • CBSA 13820
  • 1BR-FMR $1,155
  • 2BR-FMR $1,266
  • RANK-MID #175
  • YOY-FLAT +1.0%
  • VSUS-ABOVE +20%
  • IN-ST-HIGH #11 AL
  • INC-ROOM 20%
  • POP-MEGA 1.2M
  • PHOTO-NEAR Anniston-Oxford
  • VOUCH-90-110 $1,040–$1,271
  • FY-2026 FY2026

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

Read with: Understanding rent burden

Where Birmingham-Hoover sits among every US metro

2-bedroom Fair Market Rent vs. all 387 HUD metro areas

$1,266 higher than 45% of 387 metro areas

$800–$1,000: 28 metro areas (7%). Below this entry. $1,000–$1,200: 114 metro areas (29%). Below this entry. $1,200–$1,400: 95 metro areas (25%). This entry sits in this band. $1,400–$1,600: 52 metro areas (13%). Above this entry. $1,600–$1,800: 41 metro areas (11%). Above this entry. $1,800–$2,000: 26 metro areas (7%). Above this entry. $2,000–$2,200: 9 metro areas (2%). Above this entry. $2,200–$2,400: 5 metro areas (1%). Above this entry. $2,400–$2,600: 5 metro areas (1%). Above this entry. $2,600–$2,800: 5 metro areas (1%). Above this entry. $2,800–$3,000: 4 metro areas (1%). Above this entry. $3,000–$3,200: 2 metro areas (1%). Above this entry. $3,200–$3,400: 0 metro areas (0%). Above this entry. $3,400–$3,600: 0 metro areas (0%). Above this entry. $3,600–$3,800: 0 metro areas (0%). Above this entry. $3,800–$4,000: 0 metro areas (0%). Above this entry. $4,000–$4,200: 0 metro areas (0%). Above this entry. $4,200–$4,400: 1 metro areas (0%). Above this entry. This metro $800 $4,400 every US metro, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $0.2K-wide band; taller bars hold more metro areas. 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

CBSA 13820

Counties inside Birmingham-Hoover

HUD publishes one metro-wide FMR for CBSA 13820, but county-level schedules inside Birmingham-Hoover still diverge: 7 counties range from $886 (2BR in Walker) to $1,266 (Jefferson), a 43% spread. Jefferson is the largest county by population.

Jefferson County 2BR $1,266 · 672K Shelby County 2BR $1,266 · 224K St. Clair County 2BR $1,266 · 92K Walker County 2BR $886 · 65K Blount County 2BR $1,266 · 59K Chilton County 2BR $970 · 45K

Showing the 6 largest of 7 HUD counties in this CBSA. County pages carry filing-level FMR detail.

Birmingham-Hoover studio–4BR schedule (FY2026) · 2BR #175 most affordable

1BR $1,155 (+20% vs US, +1.0% YoY). Each bedroom band below is FY2026 HUD FMR for CBSA 13820.

Studio
$1,024
US avg $893
↑2.6% YoY +15% vs US
1 Bedroom
$1,155
US avg $959
↑1.0% YoY +20% vs US
2 Bedroom
$1,266
US avg $1,175
↓0.1% YoY +8% vs US
3 Bedroom
$1,583
US avg $1,525
↑0.0% YoY +4% vs US
4 Bedroom
$1,801
US avg $1,756
↑0.6% YoY +3% vs US

How Birmingham-Hoover compares on 1-bedroom rent

1-bedroom FMR vs other AL metro areas

1BR FMR / mo

What this shows Birmingham-Hoover highlighted among 5 peers · FY2026 1BR HUD FMR.

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

Birmingham-Hoover: out-of-state FMR & burden peers

PlainRent pairs Birmingham-Hoover with the 4 nearest HUD 2BR schedules and 4 nearest burden matches outside AL (burden peers exclude the FMR set; pop ≥50k).

2BR FMR · outside AL

Nearest schedules by 2BR delta (FY2026).

Akron
OH · 2 BR $1,268/mo
Lansing-East Lansing
MI · 2 BR $1,268/mo
Pueblo
CO · 2 BR $1,269/mo
Augusta-Richmond County
GA · 2 BR $1,261/mo

Burden % · outside AL

Nearest 2BR FMR ÷ ACS median income (FY2026).

Springfield
OH · 21.8% of income · 2 BR $1,106/mo
Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton
NC · 21.8% of income · 2 BR $1,095/mo
Jacksonville
NC · 21.8% of income · 2 BR $1,173/mo
Lake Charles
LA · 21.8% of income · 2 BR $1,217/mo

Birmingham-Hoover: quick answers

What is the average rent in the Birmingham-Hoover, AL HUD Metro FMR Area metro area? ▼
The FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a 1-bedroom in Birmingham-Hoover, AL HUD Metro FMR Area is $1,155 per month. A 2-bedroom is $1,266 and a studio is $1,024.
How does Birmingham-Hoover, AL HUD Metro FMR Area rent compare to the national average? ▼
Rent in the Birmingham-Hoover, AL HUD Metro FMR Area metro area is 20% above the national average. A 1-bedroom costs $1,155 compared to $959 nationally.
Where does Birmingham-Hoover rank nationally for Fair Market Rent? ▼
HUD's FY 2026 2-bedroom FMR of $1,266 ranks #175 most affordable among 387 US metro areas (the middle half of HUD metro areas).
Do county rents differ inside the Birmingham-Hoover metro area? ▼
Yes. HUD assigns one metro-wide FMR for CBSA 13820, but 7 constituent counties publish their own county FMR schedules spanning $886–$1,266 for a 2-bedroom (43% spread). Use county pages for filing at the county level.

Compare Birmingham-Hoover vs Anniston-Oxford →

Data as of FY 2026. Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Fair Market Rents. Population and demographic data from U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS).

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

FY 2026 HUD FMR $1,155/mo · 1BR AL

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.