Metro FMR · CBSA 38940 · HUD FY2026

Port St. Lucie, FL MSA Fair Market Rent

HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent for the Port St. Lucie, FL MSA metro area - 53% above the US average.

$1,467
1-bedroom FMR
$1,757
2-bedroom FMR
+7.6%
YoY change
+53%
vs US avg

The verdict

A 2-bedroom in the Port St. Lucie, FL MSA area rents at $1,757 under HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent - 50% above the US average, higher than 83% of the 387 metro areas HUD tracks.

#66
priciest of 387 US metros (2BR)
+50%
vs the US 2-bedroom average
$70,280
income to afford it (30% rule)
+7.6%
1BR change, FY2025→2026

Affordability & income context

Port St. Lucie: #66 priciest nationally · income context

At the metro's ACS median household income of $72,506, this 1-bedroom FMR takes 24.3% of annual income. It remains below the 30% affordability guide, but is a material part of a median-income household's budget.

The 2-bedroom figure places Port St. Lucie in the upper-rent quarter of HUD metro areas, using the same FY2026 HUD schedule as the national comparison.

With 494,081 residents, this is a mid-sized metro benchmark rather than a single-neighborhood rent quote.

Population grew 9.4% over the past five years (Census ACS) - among the faster-growing metros nationally, a trend that typically adds upward pressure on rents.

The ACS rental vacancy rate here is 8.2%, close to the range where market rents and HUD's FMR benchmark tend to track each other.

The Census ACS median gross rent across all rental units here is $1,491/month - the FY2026 HUD two-bedroom FMR of $1,757 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 upper-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: 54.9% of the 42,907 renter households counted by ACS paid at least 30% of income in gross rent. This ACS 2023 household measure is distinct from the FY2026 HUD FMR benchmark.

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

$1,455/mo

24.1% of median income

1 Bedroom

$1,467/mo

24.3% of median income

2 Bedroom

$1,757/mo

29.1% of median income

3 Bedroom

$2,421/mo

40.1% of median income

4 Bedroom

$2,579/mo

42.7% of median income

FMR filing desk

CBSA CBSA·38940

Port St. Lucie: $1,467/mo 1BR · #66 of 387 metros (2BR) · FY2026 CBSA 38940

  • CBSA 38940
  • 1BR-FMR $1,467
  • 2BR-FMR $1,757
  • RANK-MID #66
  • YOY-SURGE +7.6%
  • VSUS-HIGH +53%
  • IN-ST-HIGH #13 FL
  • INC-MID 24%
  • POP-MAJOR 494K
  • PHOTO-NEAR Baker County
  • VOUCH-90-110 $1,320–$1,614
  • FY-2026 FY2026

Photo-finish peer: Baker County ($545 1BR gap)

Read with: Understanding rent burden

Where Port St. Lucie sits among every US metro

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

$1,757 Top 17% higher than 83% 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%). Below this entry. $1,400–$1,600: 52 metro areas (13%). Below this entry. $1,600–$1,800: 41 metro areas (11%). This entry sits in this band. $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.

What this shows #66 of 387 HUD-tracked metro areas, 50% above the national 2-bedroom average. 40 other metro areas fall in this same rent band.

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

CBSA 38940

Counties inside Port St. Lucie

Across 2 HUD counties in CBSA 38940, 2-bedroom FMRs cluster tightly ($1,757–$1,757, 0% spread), so the metro-wide schedule tracks most constituent counties closely.

St. Lucie County 2BR $1,757 · 335K Martin County 2BR $1,757 · 159K

Port St. Lucie studio–4BR schedule (FY2026) · 2BR #66 nationally

1BR $1,467 (+53% vs US, +7.6% YoY). Each bedroom band below is FY2026 HUD FMR for CBSA 38940.

Studio
$1,455
US avg $893
↑11.0% YoY +63% vs US
1 Bedroom
$1,467
US avg $959
↑7.6% YoY +53% vs US
2 Bedroom
$1,757
US avg $1,175
↑8.2% YoY +50% vs US
3 Bedroom
$2,421
US avg $1,525
↑7.2% YoY +59% vs US
4 Bedroom
$2,579
US avg $1,756
↑5.0% YoY +47% vs US

How Port St. Lucie compares on 1-bedroom rent

1-bedroom FMR vs other FL metro areas

1BR FMR / mo

What this shows Port St. Lucie highlighted among 5 peers · FY2026 1BR HUD FMR.

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

Port St. Lucie: out-of-state FMR & burden peers

PlainRent pairs Port St. Lucie with the 4 nearest HUD 2BR schedules and 4 nearest burden matches outside FL (burden peers exclude the FMR set; pop ≥50k).

2BR FMR · outside FL

Nearest schedules by 2BR delta (FY2026).

Modesto
CA · 2 BR $1,758/mo
Ithaca
NY · 2 BR $1,753/mo
Raleigh-Cary
NC · 2 BR $1,750/mo
Broadwater County
MT · 2 BR $1,748/mo

Burden % · outside FL

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

El Centro
CA · 29% of income · 2 BR $1,362/mo
Eugene-Springfield
OR · 29.2% of income · 2 BR $1,688/mo
Lake Havasu City-Kingman
AZ · 29.4% of income · 2 BR $1,365/mo
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade
CA · 28.8% of income · 2 BR $2,255/mo

Port St. Lucie: quick answers

What is the average rent in the Port St. Lucie, FL MSA metro area? ▼
The FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a 1-bedroom in Port St. Lucie, FL MSA is $1,467 per month. A 2-bedroom is $1,757 and a studio is $1,455.
How does Port St. Lucie, FL MSA rent compare to the national average? ▼
Rent in the Port St. Lucie, FL MSA metro area is 53% above the national average. A 1-bedroom costs $1,467 compared to $959 nationally.
Where does Port St. Lucie rank nationally for Fair Market Rent? ▼
HUD's FY 2026 2-bedroom FMR of $1,757 ranks #66 most expensive among 387 US metro areas (the upper-rent quarter of HUD metro areas).
Do county rents differ inside the Port St. Lucie metro area? ▼
Yes. HUD assigns one metro-wide FMR for CBSA 38940, but 2 constituent counties publish their own county FMR schedules spanning $1,757–$1,757 for a 2-bedroom (0% spread). Use county pages for filing at the county level.
Is Port St. Lucie's population growing, and how tight is its rental market? ▼
Population grew 9.4% over the past five years (Census ACS) - among the faster-growing metros nationally, a trend that typically adds upward pressure on rents. The ACS rental vacancy rate here is 8.2%, close to the range where market rents and HUD's FMR benchmark tend to track each other.

Compare Port St. Lucie vs Baker County →

What this means for renters

Treat Port St. Lucie's FY2026 Fair Market Rent as HUD's affordability benchmark, not a single market quote.

  • Budget to roughly 30% of income: the FY2026 1-bedroom FMR of $1,467 implies about $58,680/yr to rent without being cost-burdened. Run your numbers
  • See how Port St. Lucie stacks up against a comparable metro before assuming this figure applies elsewhere. Compare vs Baker County
  • See where Port St. Lucie 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 2 counties; 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 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 $1,467/mo · 1BR FL

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.