Metro FMR · CBSA 47940 · HUD FY2026

Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA HUD Metro FMR Area Fair Market Rent

HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent for the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA HUD Metro FMR Area metro area - 16% below the US average.

$801
1-bedroom FMR
$1,051
2-bedroom FMR
+5.4%
YoY change
-16%
vs US avg

The verdict

A 2-bedroom in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA HUD Metro FMR Area area rents at $1,051 under HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent - 11% below the US average, lower than 88% of the 387 metro areas HUD tracks.

#47
most affordable of 387 US metros (2BR)
-11%
vs the US 2-bedroom average
$42,040
income to afford it (30% rule)
+5.4%
1BR change, FY2025→2026

Affordability & income context

Waterloo-Cedar Falls: #47 most affordable nationally · income context

At the metro's ACS median household income of $68,916, this 1-bedroom FMR takes 13.9% of annual income. It is well below the 30% affordability guide for a median-income household.

The 2-bedroom figure places Waterloo-Cedar Falls in the lower-rent quarter of HUD metro areas, using the same FY2026 HUD schedule as the national comparison.

With 168,404 residents, this is a smaller-metro benchmark rather than a single-neighborhood rent quote.

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.

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

$725/mo

12.6% of median income

1 Bedroom

$801/mo

13.9% of median income

2 Bedroom

$1,051/mo

18.3% of median income

3 Bedroom

$1,357/mo

23.6% of median income

4 Bedroom

$1,763/mo

30.7% of median income

FMR filing desk

CBSA CBSA·47940

Waterloo-Cedar Falls: $801/mo 1BR · #47 of 387 metros (2BR) · FY2026 CBSA 47940

  • CBSA 47940
  • 1BR-FMR $801
  • 2BR-FMR $1,051
  • RANK-MID #47
  • YOY-SURGE +5.4%
  • VSUS-BELOW -16%
  • IN-ST-LOW #3 IA
  • INC-ROOM 14%
  • POP-MID 168K
  • PHOTO-NEAR Benton County
  • VOUCH-90-110 $721–$881
  • FY-2026 FY2026

Photo-finish peer: Benton County ($72 1BR gap)

Read with: Understanding rent trends

Where Waterloo-Cedar Falls sits among every US metro

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

$1,051 higher than 12% of 387 metro areas

$800–$1,000: 28 metro areas (7%). Below this entry. $1,000–$1,200: 114 metro areas (29%). This entry sits in this band. $1,200–$1,400: 95 metro areas (25%). Above this entry. $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 47940

Counties inside Waterloo-Cedar Falls

Across 3 HUD counties in CBSA 47940, 2-bedroom FMRs cluster tightly ($978–$1,051, 7% spread), so the metro-wide schedule tracks most constituent counties closely.

Black Hawk County 2BR $1,051 · 131K Bremer County 2BR $978 · 25K Grundy County 2BR $1,051 · 12K

Waterloo-Cedar Falls studio–4BR schedule (FY2026) · 2BR #47 most affordable

1BR $801 (-16% vs US, +5.4% YoY). Each bedroom band below is FY2026 HUD FMR for CBSA 47940.

Studio
$725
US avg $893
↑6.0% YoY -19% vs US
1 Bedroom
$801
US avg $959
↑5.4% YoY -16% vs US
2 Bedroom
$1,051
US avg $1,175
↑5.4% YoY -11% vs US
3 Bedroom
$1,357
US avg $1,525
↑4.3% YoY -11% vs US
4 Bedroom
$1,763
US avg $1,756
↑5.3% YoY +0% vs US

How Waterloo-Cedar Falls compares on 1-bedroom rent

1-bedroom FMR vs other IA metro areas

1BR FMR / mo

What this shows Waterloo-Cedar Falls highlighted among 5 peers · FY2026 1BR HUD FMR.

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

Waterloo-Cedar Falls: out-of-state FMR & burden peers

PlainRent pairs Waterloo-Cedar Falls with the 4 nearest HUD 2BR schedules and 4 nearest burden matches outside IA (burden peers exclude the FMR set; pop ≥50k).

2BR FMR · outside IA

Nearest schedules by 2BR delta (FY2026).

Geary County
KS · 2 BR $1,048/mo
Brownsville-Harlingen
TX · 2 BR $1,047/mo
Hattiesburg
MS · 2 BR $1,047/mo
Elizabethtown
KY · 2 BR $1,056/mo

Burden % · outside IA

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

Enid
OK · 18.3% of income · 2 BR $1,027/mo
Bosque County
TX · 18.3% of income · 2 BR $973/mo
Casper
WY · 18.2% of income · 2 BR $1,082/mo
Murray County
GA · 18.4% of income · 2 BR $1,009/mo

Waterloo-Cedar Falls: quick answers

What is the average rent in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA HUD Metro FMR Area metro area? ▼
The FY 2026 Fair Market Rent for a 1-bedroom in Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA HUD Metro FMR Area is $801 per month. A 2-bedroom is $1,051 and a studio is $725.
How does Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA HUD Metro FMR Area rent compare to the national average? ▼
Rent in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA HUD Metro FMR Area metro area is 16% below the national average. A 1-bedroom costs $801 compared to $959 nationally.
Where does Waterloo-Cedar Falls rank nationally for Fair Market Rent? ▼
HUD's FY 2026 2-bedroom FMR of $1,051 ranks #47 most affordable among 387 US metro areas (the lower-rent quarter of HUD metro areas).
Do county rents differ inside the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area? ▼
Yes. HUD assigns one metro-wide FMR for CBSA 47940, but 3 constituent counties publish their own county FMR schedules spanning $978–$1,051 for a 2-bedroom (7% spread). Use county pages for filing at the county level.

Compare Waterloo-Cedar Falls vs Benton County →

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 $801/mo · 1BR IA

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.