Alternative Methods For Calculating Fair Market Rents (FMRs) in Rental Markets With Rapidly Rising Rents | FR 6400 N 60

Opportunity Information: Apply for FR 6400 N 60

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is offering a discretionary research grant focused on improving how Fair Market Rents (FMRs) are calculated in places where rents are climbing quickly and existing FMR methods do not keep pace. The opportunity, titled "Alternative Methods For Calculating Fair Market Rents (FMRs) in Rental Markets With Rapidly Rising Rents," seeks proposals that can better capture real-time or near-real-time rent conditions, especially in markets that are out of balance (often described as being in disequilibrium). HUDs underlying concern is practical: when published FMRs lag behind actual rents, Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) families may not be able to find a unit they can afford within the programs allowed search period, even when they technically have a voucher.

The research HUD wants funded has two central tasks. First, applicants must develop a clear, defensible definition of what qualifies as a "rental market with rapidly rising rents." This is more than a descriptive label; HUD is looking for criteria that can be applied consistently across different geographies and market types. A strong approach would likely involve measurable thresholds, such as rent growth rates over specific time windows, comparisons to historical averages, volatility indicators, or signals that standard survey-based measures are systematically behind current asking rents. The definition needs to be operational, meaning it should help HUD identify which areas should be treated differently for FMR purposes and when that designation should begin and end.

Second, HUD is asking for alternative ways to calculate FMRs that track market conditions more closely than current methods in these fast-changing markets. HUD explicitly invites two broad categories of innovation: using alternative sources of gross rent data (for example, sources that update more frequently than traditional datasets), and/or applying alternative calculation methods to existing data. The focus is not just on theoretical improvements; HUD wants approaches that could realistically improve the alignment between published FMRs and the rents families face when searching for housing. Since FMRs influence voucher payment standards, the goal is to reduce the mismatch that can make vouchers hard to use in hot markets where landlords are raising rents quickly.

The opportunity also asks applicants to go beyond the immediate problem and consider whether any proposed alternative methods should be used more broadly across all types of housing markets, not only in rapidly rising rent environments. In other words, HUD is interested in whether the recommended improvements should be a targeted tool reserved for exceptional conditions, a scalable replacement for current methods, or a hybrid approach where different calculation strategies apply depending on market behavior. This component encourages researchers to think about tradeoffs like accuracy versus stability, the risk of overreacting to short-term spikes, administrative feasibility, data availability nationwide, transparency to stakeholders, and consistency across jurisdictions.

Administratively, the funding instrument is a cooperative agreement, which typically means HUD expects to have substantial involvement during the projects execution, such as collaboration on methods, milestones, data use, or review of interim findings. The opportunity is listed under CFDA 14.536 (Housing). Eligibility is described as unrestricted, meaning it is open to any type of entity as long as the full notice does not add specific limitations. HUD anticipated making about three awards, with an award ceiling of $500,000 per award. The funding opportunity number is FR 6400 N 60. The notice was created June 2, 2020, and the original closing date was August 4, 2020, with applications due by 11:59:59 pm Eastern time.

In practical terms, HUD is trying to solve a well-known timing problem: many standard rent measures are based on survey data and multi-year smoothing, which can be slow to reflect sudden market shifts. When rents jump rapidly, FMRs can lag, and that lag can translate into voucher families being priced out of units that meet program requirements. This grant is intended to identify a better, evidence-based approach so FMRs can respond more effectively in these conditions, while also weighing whether any improvements should reshape how FMRs are calculated in general.

• The US Department of Housing and Urban Development in the housing sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Alternative Methods For Calculating Fair Market Rents (FMRs) in Rental Markets With Rapidly Rising Rents" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 14.536.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 02, 2020.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 04, 2020 The application deadline is 115959 pm Eastern Standard time on. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $500,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 3 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for FR 6400 N 60

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