Fair market rent in Skokie by bedroom size (FY2026)
HUD's fiscal-year 2026 Fair Market Rents are the baseline housing-voucher programs use in Skokie — and the only official bedroom-by-bedroom market-rent schedule published for this area. (How these figures compare with what current renters actually pay, size by size: rent by bedroom in Skokie.)
FY2026 fair market rent, studio to 4 bedrooms
Skokie is in a HUD Small Area FMR metro, so HUD publishes a separate figure per ZIP code — these, not the metro-wide number, are what local payment standards are based on.
| Unit size | 60076 South Skokie | 60077 North Skokie / Old Orchard | Chicago-Joliet-Naperville metro-wide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio / efficiency | $1,620 | $1,500 | $1,480 |
| 1 bedroom | $1,730 | $1,600 | $1,581 |
| 2 bedrooms | $1,950 | $1,800 | $1,781 |
| 3 bedrooms | $2,510 | $2,320 | $2,294 |
| 4 bedrooms | $2,900 | $2,680 | $2,653 |
ZIP-level Small Area FMRs vs the Chicago-Joliet-Naperville metro-wide figure. All amounts are monthly gross rent — rent plus tenant-paid utilities.
How the FMR compares to Skokie's market rate
Today's Skokie market average is $2,250/month (all unit sizes blended), while the 2-bedroom FMR is $1,800–$1,950. The FMR is deliberately set at the 40th percentile of area rents — slightly below the middle of the market — so in a market like Skokie's it reads below the current average. Voucher holders typically need to look below the headline market rate, and units at or under these figures exist but take more searching. The two measures also differ in kind: the FMR includes utilities and is fixed for the fiscal year; the market average blends all unit sizes and moves monthly. Direction, not a precise dollar gap.
What a fair market rent actually is
- It's a standard, not a price. HUD estimates the 40th-percentile gross rent (rent + utilities) for recent movers, once per federal fiscal year. Nothing here is a listing or a promise of what you'll find.
- It's not exactly what Section 8 pays. Your local housing authority sets its payment standard between roughly 90% and 110% of these figures (per ZIP, in Small Area FMR metros like this one), and what a voucher covers also depends on household income. Always confirm the current payment standard with the housing authority.
- It's not a rent cap. Landlords can ask more; the FMR only governs what assistance programs use as a baseline.
Do you qualify? FY2026 Section 8 income limits
Eligibility for a Housing Choice Voucher is about income, not luck: HUD sets annual limits for the Chicago-Joliet-Naperville area as fractions of its median family income — $121,500/year for FY2026. Vouchers generally go to households under the very low income (50%) limit, and by federal law three-quarters of each year's new vouchers must go to households under the extremely low income (30%) limit. The 80% "low income" column governs admission to some other HUD programs, such as public housing.
| Household size | Extremely low (30% of median) | Very low — Section 8 (50% of median) | Low (80% of median) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | $25,550 | $42,550 | $68,050 |
| 2 people | $29,200 | $48,600 | $77,800 |
| 3 people | $32,850 | $54,700 | $87,500 |
| 4 people | $36,450 | $60,750 | $97,200 |
| 5 people | $39,400 | $65,650 | $105,000 |
| 6 people | $44,360 | $70,500 | $112,800 |
| 7 people | $50,040 | $75,350 | $120,550 |
| 8 people | $55,720 | $80,200 | $128,350 |
Annual gross household income, FY2026, Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL HUD Metro FMR Area. HUD floors the "extremely low" figures at the federal poverty guideline, so some run slightly above a straight 30%. The housing authority applies these (plus deductions, asset rules, and local preferences) when it screens an application — this table tells you whether applying is worth your time, not whether you're approved.
For scale: the median Skokie household income is $93,550 (2019–2023 ACS 5-year) — above the very-low-income band at every household size. Vouchers here target households earning well below the middle of the market. (That compares household income against size-adjusted family limits — direction, not an eligibility ruling.)
How the two halves of this page fit together: a voucher household generally pays about 30% of its adjusted monthly income toward rent, and the voucher covers the difference up to the local payment standard — which is set from the fair market rents above, ZIP by ZIP in this metro. Income limits decide who gets in; FMRs decide how far the voucher reaches.
How to apply for Section 8 in Skokie
Skokie has no housing authority of its own — the Housing Authority of Cook County (HACC) administers the Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) program for suburban Cook County, Skokie included.
HACC's Housing Choice Voucher waiting list is not always open — it opens for application windows periodically (most recently by online lottery) and is closed the rest of the time, so the practical first step is checking HACC's site for current openings. Separate project-based and senior/public-housing lists open on their own schedules and are sometimes accepting applications even when the main voucher list is closed.
Applying is always free. HACC never charges to join a waiting list — anyone asking for money to "register" or "move you up the list" is not the housing authority. Waiting-list status changes — always confirm what's open on Housing Authority of Cook County (HACC)'s own site. Income-eligible and waiting? Our tenant rights page lists the free legal-aid and emergency rental-assistance resources for Skokie renters.
Source & caveats
All FMR and income-limit figures come from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Policy Development and Research — the public Fair Market Rents and Income Limits datasets, fiscal year 2026, for the Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL HUD Metro FMR Area. This site is not affiliated with HUD or any housing authority. Market-rate figures elsewhere on the page come from Zillow's ZORI index and measure something different — see the methodology for how the sources fit together, and the Skokie rent overview for the current market picture.
Get the Skokie rent report, monthly
One email when the numbers update: average rent, what moved, and which ZIPs changed. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.