Voucher Landlord HubSection 8 rents and payment standards, with sources
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Chicago Housing Authority (CHA)

Chicago, IL Section 8 payment standards

Where to find Chicago Housing Authority (CHA)'s payment standards, and HUD's FY2027 Fair Market Rents for the area as a benchmark.

Not legal advice — verify current state law and have an attorney review for your state. Payment standards change, and the housing authority's rent-reasonableness review, utility allowance and the family's income decide what it will actually pay. Verify the current amount with the housing authority before you set a rent.

No table copied. We could not retrieve a current CHA payment standard table on the retrieval date. CHA's HCV Administrative Plan says its schedule of payment standards sets the maximum subsidy (Section 16-II.B).[1] Retrieved October 21, 2026.

HUD FY2027 Fair Market Rents: Cook County, IL

HUD area: Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL HUD Metro FMR Area. These are HUD's figures, not the housing authority's schedule. Federal rules generally have housing authorities set payment standards at 90–110% of the FMR, but some (including Moving to Work agencies) use other approved levels, so ask the authority for its current amount.

Unit sizeFY2027 FMR
Studio$1,678[4]
1 BR$1,780[4]
2 BR$2,011[4]
3 BR$2,586[4]
4 BR$2,954[4]

Full Cook County FMR page

How landlords use this

It caps the subsidy, not your rent

The payment standard is the most the housing authority will count toward rent plus tenant-paid utilities. The rent still has to pass its rent-reasonableness review.

The 40% rule at move-in

For a new lease, if the gross rent is above the payment standard, the family's share can't be more than 40% of its monthly adjusted income.

Treat every applicant the same

Use the same written screening criteria for voucher holders as for everyone else. Many states and cities prohibit refusing renters because they pay with a voucher; check your local law.

Sources

  1. CHA, HCV Administrative Plan (effective October 1, 2025), Section 6-II.C (retrieved October 21, 2026): https://www.thecha.org/sites/default/files/2025-10/2026AdministrativePlan_10.25_BoardApprovedPolicies_0.pdf
  2. CHA, Property Owner Resources (retrieved October 21, 2026): https://www.thecha.org/property-owner-support/property-owner-resources
  3. 24 CFR 982.503 (payment standards are generally set at 90-110% of the FMR) (retrieved October 21, 2026): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-24/subtitle-B/chapter-IX/part-982/subpart-K/section-982.503
  4. HUD USER, FY2027 Fair Market Rents, county-level file (FY27_FMRs.xlsx) (retrieved October 21, 2026): https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/fmr/fmr2027/FY27_FMRs.xlsx