Affordable Housing 101

What is "Affordable Housing"?

• "Affordable housing" is housing that is affordable to households with low incomes, meaning that these households pay no more than 30% of their income for housing costs like rent, mortgage, and utilities.
• "Low-income" is based on the Area Median Income ("AMI") of the city or county. Typically, households are considered low-income if they earn no more than 80% of AMI. 
  • Households earning under 50% of AMI are considered very low-income
  • Households earning under 30% of AMI are considered extremely low-income 
  • This information can be found on HUD's website here

  • 2024 Income Limit Area	Median Family Income	FY 2023 Income Limit Category	Persons in Family   1               2              3                4                5                6               7               8
    Durham- Chapel Hill NC HUD Metro FMR  Area	$105,900	Extremely Low (30%) Income Limits ($)   Very Low (50%) Income Limits ($)   Low (80%) Income Limits ($)	22,250    25,400    28,600    31,750      36,580       41,960     47,340     52,720       37,100     42,400    47,700     52,950     57,200      61,450      65,700     69,900     59,300    67,800      76,250     84,700      91,500      98,300      105,050    111,850

Affordable Housing Statistics

Fair Market Rents (FMRs), regularly published by HUD, represent the cost to rent a moderately-priced dwelling unit in the local housing market. To rent a 2-bedroom apartment at FMR in Orange County, the occupant would need to make $25.29/hour. North Carolina's minimum wage is $7.25/hour.

Sources: National Low Income Housing Coalition, 2023  & North Carolina Housing Coalition, 2024

Impacts of Affordable Housing

The briefs below from the N.C. Housing Finance Agency use the latest research to show how housing affordability benefits individuals and communities beyond just providing shelter:

• Affordable Housing Benefits Education
• Affordable Housing Benefits Health
• Affordable Housing Benefits The Economy
• Affordable Housing Benefits Communities

Funding for Affordable Housing