How many people live in subsidized housing in California?
Data updated August 27, 2024
About 921,000 people in 2023, or about 2.0 people per unit in subsidized housing. Subsidized housing options vary by location, ranging from high-rise or garden-style apartments to single-family dwellings, duplexes, and more. On average, residents had lived in their units for twelve years and four months (148 months).
Showing data for
In 2023
921K
people lived in subsidized housing in California
In 2023
2.4%
of the California population lived in subsidized housing
Federally subsidized rental housing began with 1937’s US Housing Act, which created the United States Housing Authority and provided financial assistance to state and local governments for housing low-income people. Since then, the government has provided housing assistance to low-income renters through programs overseen by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
In Santa Cruz County, 4.9% of people live in subsidized housing, the most of any county in California.
Share of population living in subsidized housing in 2023, by county
People who live in subsidized housing share one thing: incomes low enough to qualify for housing assistance. In 2023, HUD classified 95% of households in subsidized housing as very low income and 81% as extremely low income. The average household in subsidized housing earned $21,051 in annual income. Across all subsidized housing, 63% of households earned less than $20,000.
40% of households with subsidies earned $10K–$15K in annual income.
California, 2023
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Renters in subsidized housing earn income from different sources. Welfare is the main income source for 9% of households. According to HUD and the Census Bureau, “welfare” includes the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, general assistance, or emergency assistance payments. Another 23% of households earn the majority of their income through wages, salaries, and business income. Finally, for 65% of households living in subsidized housing, the majority of income comes from other sources, a broad category that includes Social Security payments; insurance benefits; pensions; interest or dividends; and payments in lieu of salary like worker’s compensation, severance, unemployment, or disability. The remaining 3% of households is unaccounted for in the data.
Welfare assistance programs were the primary source of income for 9% of households in subsidized housing.
California, 2023
Households living in subsidized housing contribute to their rent. In 2023, households living in subsidized housing paid average monthly rent of $537, which translates to an average of $6,444 per year, or approximately 30.61% of the average household’s annual income. HUD contributed $1,481 per household per month, on average.
Households that qualify for subsidies have a variety of family structures. HUD data focused on homes with children, female-headed households, and households that include people with disabilities. In 2023:
- 26% of households had one or more children under 18 years, and about 81% of these were headed by single parents.
- 69% of households were headed by women, and 22% were headed by women with children.
- 25% of all people living in subsidized housing had a disability.
In addition, 73% of households that lived in subsidized housing were headed by people belonging to minority groups, which the Census Bureau defines as anyone whose race and ethnicity is anything other than “white alone, non-Hispanic.”
People of all ages receive housing assistance.
Subsidized households were most often headed by those 62 and older.
California, 2023
Fifty-one percent of households living in subsidized housing are headed by people age 62 and older, the youngest age when people can qualify for Social Security. People aged 25 to 50 are considered “prime-age workers,” and households led by this group make up 30% of all households in subsidized housing.
