Metro FMR · CBSA 14100 · HUD FY2025

Columbia County, PA HUD Metro FMR Area Fair Market Rent

HUD's FY2025 Fair Market Rent for the Columbia County, PA HUD Metro FMR Area metro area - 5% below the US average.

$871
1-bedroom FMR
$1,065
2-bedroom FMR
-5%
vs US avg

The verdict

A 2-bedroom in the Columbia County, PA HUD Metro FMR Area area rents at $1,065 under HUD's FY2025 Fair Market Rent - 6% below the US average, lower than 77% of the 384 metro areas HUD tracks.

#89
most affordable of 384 US metros (2BR)
-6%
vs the US 2-bedroom average
$42,600
income to afford it (30% rule)

Affordability & income context

Columbia County: #89 most affordable nationally · income context

At the metro's ACS median household income of $61,992, this 1-bedroom FMR takes 16.9% of annual income. It is well below the 30% affordability guide for a median-income household.

The 2-bedroom figure places Columbia County in the lower-rent quarter of HUD metro areas, using the same FY2025 HUD schedule as the national comparison.

Population declined 23.0% over the past five years (Census ACS), a trend that can ease rental-market pressure over time even as FMR reflects recent rent levels.

The ACS rental vacancy rate here is 3.2%, a tight rental market where HUD's annual FMR schedule can lag what landlords are actually asking.

The Census ACS median gross rent across all rental units here is $904/month - the FY2025 HUD two-bedroom FMR of $1,065 runs 17.8% above that all-unit-types median. The two figures measure different things (ACS covers every rented unit; FMR targets a specific bedroom count), so a gap is expected, not an error.

Its 2-bedroom FMR sits in the lower-rent quarter 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.

Observed renter burden: 37.9% of the 7,652 renter households counted by ACS paid at least 30% of income in gross rent. This ACS 2023 household measure is distinct from the FY2025 HUD FMR benchmark.

ACS median household income lags the FY2025 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

$730/mo

14.1% of median income

1 Bedroom

$871/mo

16.9% of median income

2 Bedroom

$1,065/mo

20.6% of median income

3 Bedroom

$1,283/mo

24.8% of median income

4 Bedroom

$1,505/mo

29.1% of median income

FMR filing desk

CBSA CBSA·14100

Columbia County: $871/mo 1BR · #89 of 384 metros (2BR) · FY2025 CBSA 14100

  • CBSA 14100
  • 1BR-FMR $871
  • 2BR-FMR $1,065
  • RANK-MID #89
  • YOY-NA YoY pending
  • VSUS-NEAR -5%
  • IN-ST-LOW #3 PA
  • INC-ROOM 17%
  • POP-NA Pop n/a
  • PHOTO-FINISH Altoona
  • VOUCH-90-110 $784–$958
  • FY-2025 FY2025

Photo-finish peer: Altoona ($11 1BR gap)

Read with: How Fair Market Rent works

Where Columbia County sits among every US metro

2-bedroom Fair Market Rent vs. all 384 HUD metro areas

$1,065 higher than 23% of 384 metro areas

$800–$1,000: 54 metro areas (14%). Below this entry. $1,000–$1,200: 119 metro areas (31%). This entry sits in this band. $1,200–$1,400: 79 metro areas (21%). Above this entry. $1,400–$1,600: 46 metro areas (12%). Above this entry. $1,600–$1,800: 34 metro areas (9%). Above this entry. $1,800–$2,000: 24 metro areas (6%). Above this entry. $2,000–$2,200: 7 metro areas (2%). Above this entry. $2,200–$2,400: 8 metro areas (2%). Above this entry. $2,400–$2,600: 2 metro areas (1%). Above this entry. $2,600–$2,800: 8 metro areas (2%). Above this entry. $2,800–$3,000: 2 metro areas (1%). Above this entry. $3,000–$3,200: 0 metro areas (0%). 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.

What this shows #89 of 384 HUD-tracked metro areas, 6% below the national 2-bedroom average. 118 other metro areas fall in this same rent band.

Source U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents · FY2025

Columbia County studio–4BR schedule (FY2025) · 2BR #89 most affordable

Each bedroom band is FY2025 HUD Fair Market Rent for CBSA 14100.

Studio
$730
US avg $854
-15% vs US
1 Bedroom
$871
US avg $919
-5% vs US
2 Bedroom
$1,065
US avg $1,130
-6% vs US
3 Bedroom
$1,283
US avg $1,469
-13% vs US
4 Bedroom
$1,505
US avg $1,693
-11% vs US

How Columbia County compares on 1-bedroom rent

1-bedroom FMR vs other PA metro areas

1BR FMR / mo

What this shows Columbia County highlighted among 5 peers · FY2025 1BR HUD FMR.

Source U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) As of FY2025

Columbia County: out-of-state FMR & burden peers

PlainRent pairs Columbia County with the 4 nearest HUD 2BR schedules and 4 nearest burden matches outside PA (burden peers exclude the FMR set; pop ≥50k).

2BR FMR · outside PA

Nearest schedules by 2BR delta (FY2025).

Morgantown
WV · 2 BR $1,065/mo
Casper
WY · 2 BR $1,062/mo
Springfield
OH · 2 BR $1,061/mo
Rocky Mount
NC · 2 BR $1,072/mo

Burden % · outside PA

Nearest 2BR FMR ÷ ACS median income (FY2025).

Owensboro
KY · 20.6% of income · 2 BR $1,128/mo
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
MN · 20.6% of income · 2 BR $1,685/mo
Cherokee County
KS · 20.7% of income · 2 BR $1,036/mo
Muncie
IN · 20.7% of income · 2 BR $982/mo

Columbia County: quick answers

What is the average rent in the Columbia County, PA HUD Metro FMR Area metro area? ▼
The FY 2025 Fair Market Rent for a 1-bedroom in Columbia County, PA HUD Metro FMR Area is $871 per month. A 2-bedroom is $1,065 and a studio is $730.
How does Columbia County, PA HUD Metro FMR Area rent compare to the national average? ▼
Rent in the Columbia County, PA HUD Metro FMR Area metro area is 5% below the national average. A 1-bedroom costs $871 compared to $919 nationally.
Where does Columbia County rank nationally for Fair Market Rent? ▼
HUD's FY 2025 2-bedroom FMR of $1,065 ranks #89 most affordable among 384 US metro areas (the lower-rent quarter of HUD metro areas).
What income do I need to afford rent in Columbia County, PA HUD Metro FMR Area? ▼
Based on the 30% affordability rule, you need an annual income of at least $34,840 ($2,903/month) to afford a 1-bedroom at Fair Market Rent in the Columbia County, PA HUD Metro FMR Area area.
Is Columbia County's population growing, and how tight is its rental market? ▼
Population declined 23.0% over the past five years (Census ACS), a trend that can ease rental-market pressure over time even as FMR reflects recent rent levels. The ACS rental vacancy rate here is 3.2%, a tight rental market where HUD's annual FMR schedule can lag what landlords are actually asking.

Compare Columbia County vs Altoona →

What this means for renters

Treat Columbia County's FY2025 Fair Market Rent as HUD's affordability benchmark, not a single market quote.

  • Budget to roughly 30% of income: the FY2025 1-bedroom FMR of $871 implies about $34,840/yr to rent without being cost-burdened. Run your numbers
  • See how Columbia County stacks up against a comparable metro before assuming this figure applies elsewhere. Compare vs Altoona
  • See where Columbia County ranks nationally on rent. National rankings

Fair Market Rent is HUD's 40th-percentile policy benchmark used to set Housing Choice Voucher payment standards. This is a metro-wide figure across 1 county; actual asking rents in any specific county can run higher or lower, and HUD updates FMRs once a year. This site is informational and not financial or relocation advice.

Data as of FY 2025 (HUD has not published FY2026 FMR for this metro; corpus latest is FY2026). 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 2025 HUD FMR $871/mo · 1BR PA

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 2025.