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Income limits explained: Extremely Low, Very Low, and Low Income

Last updated June 14, 2026

When a PHA says you're "Very Low Income" or "Extremely Low Income," that's not a vague description — it's a specific HUD-defined category based on a published threshold for your household size in your specific county or metro area. Those thresholds change every year, and the category you land in affects more than just whether you qualify.

The three tiers, in plain terms

HUD calculates income limits each year based on the Area Median Income (AMI) for every county and metro area in the country, then sets three tiers relative to it:

  • Extremely Low Income (ELI) — generally 30% of the area median income (with a floor at the federal poverty guideline in lower-cost areas, so it doesn't drop below a basic minimum).
  • Very Low Income (VLI) — 50% of the area median income.
  • Low Income (LI) — 80% of the area median income.

All three scale up with household size — a household of five has a higher threshold than a single person living alone in the same area, for every tier. This is one of the reasons household composition matters so much: adding or removing a household member doesn't just change whose income counts, it can shift which tier your household falls into.

Why the tier matters beyond the initial yes/no

Most people think of income limits as a simple eligibility gate — and at the top end, that's true: households above the Low Income limit generally don't qualify for a Housing Choice Voucher at all. But the tier keeps mattering after you're on a list:

  • HUD requires PHAs to target the majority of new voucher admissions to Extremely Low Income households each year. If your household is ELI, that can meaningfully affect your position relative to VLI or LI applicants on the same list.
  • Some properties and waiting-list preferences are tied to a specific tier — a designated property for elderly households, for example, might have its own income-targeting rules layered on top of the general voucher program.
  • Recertification compares your current income against these same thresholds — moving from one tier to another at recertification (a raise, a new job, a household member's income now counting) can change which preferences or designated units you're eligible for, even if it doesn't make you ineligible outright.

Household size: the variable people forget

A limit isn't one number per area — it's a small table, one figure per household size. This means two things that catch people off guard:

  1. A household of one and a household of six in the same county have very different thresholds — sometimes by a factor of two or more.
  2. Changes in household composition can move you between tiers without any change in income. If an adult child moves out and their income leaves the household total, your adjusted income drops — but your household size also drops, which lowers your threshold too. The two changes don't always cancel out. See families with young children and multigenerational households for how PHAs handle these situations.

The same income, a different category, a different city

Because limits are based on local area median income, a household earning the exact same dollar amount can be "Very Low Income" in one county and "Low Income" — or even above the Low Income limit entirely — in another. High-cost metro areas have much higher AMI, and therefore much higher thresholds, than rural counties even within the same state.

This matters most if you're weighing a move, including porting your voucher to a new area. The same household income that comfortably qualified you as Very Low Income at home could land you in a different tier somewhere else — which can affect waiting-list preferences and designated-property eligibility at your destination, separately from how far your voucher actually stretches in rent terms.

Finding your area's actual numbers

Income limits are published per county/metro area and household size, and they're not the kind of figure worth guessing at — a few thousand dollars in either direction can be the difference between tiers. The most reliable path is to ask your local PHA directly when you apply, since they'll confirm the current figures for your exact household size. Start with the Housing Authority Finder if you don't already know which agency serves your area.

Income limits decide a lot more than a simple "qualified / not qualified" — they shape preferences, designated units, and how your household is evaluated at every recertification. For the full picture of how eligibility works beyond income, see Am I eligible for Section 8?