Section 8 Tenant Rent Calculator

Under 24 CFR 5.628, Total Tenant Payment is the highest of four amounts, rounded to the nearest dollar: 30% of monthly adjusted income, 10% of monthly income, the welfare rent where an as-paid state applies one, and the minimum rent. Intermediate monthly figures carry to the penny and only the final TTP rounds to the dollar.

Total Tenant Payment is the full amount a household is responsible for each month, covering both rent to the owner and tenant-paid utilities. Subtract the utility allowance from TTP and what is left is tenant rent, the part the household actually pays the owner.

The subsidy covers the difference between gross rent and Total Tenant Payment. Gross rent is contract rent plus the utility allowance. If gross rent is $988 and TTP is $240, the housing assistance payment is $748.

Adjusted income is annual income minus the household's mandatory deductions. It is never less than zero. For HUD Multifamily certifications in 2026 the flat deductions are $480 per dependent and $400 for an elderly or disabled family. Childcare that enables work, job search, or school is deductible, as are medical and disability assistance expenses above 3% of annual income. The medical deduction is available only to elderly or disabled families. These figures change for certifications effective on or after January 1, 2027, when HOTMA compliance begins for Multifamily.

Minimum rent is a floor under Total Tenant Payment, fixed at $25 for project-based Section 8 by 24 CFR 5.630. It does not apply to Rent Supplement, RAP, BMIR, Section 236, or the PRAC and PAC programs. When a family requests a hardship exemption the owner suspends the minimum rent starting the month after the request. A temporary hardship is a 90-day suspension, after which minimum rent is reinstated back to the start of the suspension with a reasonable repayment agreement. A long-term hardship exemption continues while the hardship continues, with no fixed end date, so the owner re-verifies rather than tracking an expiry. The exemption affects minimum rent only, so the other components still run.

When the utility allowance is larger than Total Tenant Payment, the household pays no rent to the owner and receives the difference as a utility reimbursement. It exists because the household is paying utilities directly and their income cannot cover them.

Yes. TTP is not capped at gross rent. Gross rent is an admissions screen: under HUD Handbook 4350.3 Exhibit 5-8 an owner may admit a Section 8, RAP, or PAC applicant only if TTP is less than gross rent. If an in-place household's income rises until TTP reaches gross rent, the housing assistance payment falls to zero, the household pays the contract rent, and assistance is terminated on form HUD-50059 under code TI.