How many people live in subsidized housing in Florida?
About 403,000 people in 2023, or about 2.1 people per unit. Subsidized housing options vary by location, ranging from high-rise or garden-style apartments to single-family dwellings, duplexes, and more. On average, residents in 2023 had lived in their units for nine years and six months.
Showing data for
In 2023
403K
people lived in subsidized housing in Florida
In 2023
1.8%
of the Florida 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 Duval County, 3.8% of people live in subsidized housing, the most of any county in Florida.
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 93% of households in Florida's subsidized housing as very low income and 73% as extremely low income. The average household in Florida's subsidized housing earned $17,390 in annual income. Across all subsidized housing in Florida, 70% of households earned less than $20,000.
41% of households with subsidies earned $10K–$15K in annual income.
Florida, 2023
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Renters living in subsidized housing earn income from different sources. Wages, salaries, and business income are the main income source for 25% of households. Another 71% of households earn the majority of their income from other sources, which include Social Security payments, insurance benefits, pensions, interest or dividends, and payments in lieu of salary such as worker’s compensation, severance, unemployment, or disability. Finally, welfare — which according to HUD and the Census Bureau includes the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, general assistance, or emergency assistance payments — is not the primary source of income for any households in Florida. The remaining 4% is unaccounted for in the data.
Wages, salaries, and business income were the primary source of income for 25% of households in subsidized housing.
Florida, 2023
Households living in subsidized housing contribute to their rent. In 2023, households living in subsidized housing in Florida paid average monthly rent of $449, which translates to an average of $5,388 per year, or 31% of the average household’s annual income. HUD contributed $1,122 per household per month, on average.
Households that qualify for subsidies have a variety of family structures. HUD data focuses on homes with children, female-headed households, and households that include people with disabilities. In 2023:
- 35% of households had one or more children under 18 years, and about 94% of these were headed by single parents.
- 78% of households were headed by women, and 34% were headed by women with children.
- 22% of all people living in subsidized housing had a disability.
In addition, 83% of households that lived in subsidized housing in Florida 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.”
Subsidized households were most often headed by those 62 and older.
Florida, 2023
Forty-four 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 38% of all households in subsidized housing.
