Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA MSA Fair Market Rent

What these rents mean for the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA MSA metro

HUD's FY 2026 Fair Market Rent schedule sets the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA MSA Metro Area (CBSA 42200) 1-bedroom at $2,746, with a studio at $2,459, 2-bedroom at $3,124, 3-bedroom at $4,075, and 4-bedroom at $4,647. These are the 40th percentile of gross rents, utilities included, excluding telephone, meaning roughly 60% of standard-quality rentals in the metro cost more. Because HUD treats a metropolitan statistical area as a single rent market, every county inside the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA MSA CBSA shares these FMR figures, and local housing authorities use them to set Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher payment standards (typically between 90% and 110% of FMR).

Against the national benchmark, a 1-bedroom in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA MSA is 186% above the US 1-bedroom FMR of $959. Year-over-year the 1-bedroom FMR shifted from $2,386 in FY 2025 to $2,746 in FY 2026 - a change of +15.1%, which outpaces typical consumer inflation and signals continued demand pressure. Metro-level FMRs often diverge from the rents listed for any single suburb, so renters should view this as the HUD ceiling, not a street-level market rate.

For affordability, the 30% rule says rent should not exceed 30% of gross household income. At the FY 2026 1-bedroom FMR of $2,746, that implies a household income of $109,840 per year (about $9,153/month) - a 2-bedroom at $3,124 raises that income floor further. With a metro population of 445,213 and a median household income of $95,977, the gap between FMR and local wages determines how many households qualify as rent-burdened (paying more than 30% of income) or severely burdened (above 50%). Metro FMR also anchors the Small Area FMR program, which sets ZIP-level payment standards in designated metros to expand voucher choice into higher-opportunity neighborhoods.