What Is Area Median Income (AMI)?
Area median income is an important benchmark when determining housing eligibility for affordable housing properties.
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AMI Explained
Area median income — often referred to as simply AMI — is a key metric in affordable housing. Area median income is defined as the midpoint of a specific area’s income distribution and is calculated on an annual basis by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD refers to the figure as MFI, or median family income, based on a four-person household.
Why is AMI important?
This metric is important because many of HUD’s housing programs are based on the value for a metropolitan statistical area or MSA, impacting renter eligibility determinations among other uses. Because the HUD figure is tied to a four-person household, these values are not absolute and can be adjusted depending on the size of a household. For an affordable housing community which reserves units for households earning 50% of AMI, a two-person household would have a lower threshold than a five-person household, for example.
What is AMI used for?
Using AMI benchmarks for renter eligibility is typically a requirement if your property benefits under the Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, or LIHTC, program. For these programs, generally eligibility is set at a percentage of AMI, usually less than 100%.
Specifically for housing under HUD’s Section 8 program, eligibility is determined by three rigid tiers of renters by income:
Low Income (at or below 80% of AMI)
Very Low Income (at or below 50% of AMI)
Extremely Low Income (at or below 30% of AMI)
To see the median family income or AMI for an area, visit HUD’s data service which provides data annually, typically in the second quarter of the year.
Area Median Income by State
State | Total | Metro | Non-Metro |
|---|---|---|---|
Alabama | $73,600 | $78,000 | $63,200 |
Alaska | $102,200 | $109,600 | $92,200 |
Arizona | $82,800 | $84,300 | $55,400 |
Arkansas | $69,400 | $74,800 | $60,200 |
California | $101,600 | $102,100 | $80,300 |
Colorado | $105,800 | $109,800 | $82,500 |
Connecticut | $112,600 | $112,600 | $112,600 |
Delaware | $96,900 | $96,900 | $71,300* |
District of Columbia | $144,800 | $144,800 | $71,300* |
Florida | $79,300 | $79,900 | $60,700 |
Georgia | $83,200 | $88,000 | $64,100 |
Hawaii | $107,200 | $111,100 | $95,200 |
Idaho | $80,400 | $84,400 | $71,600 |
Illinois | $97,600 | $101,700 | $76,100 |
Indiana | $82,100 | $85,100 | $74,500 |
Iowa | $86,900 | $93,600 | $78,900 |
Kansas | $87,800 | $95,500 | $73,400 |
Kentucky | $73,600 | $82,800 | $61,700 |
Louisiana | $72,400 | $75,700 | $56,600 |
Maine | $84,800 | $94,700 | $72,100 |
Maryland | $117,500 | $118,200 | $93,600 |
Massachusetts | $120,400 | $120,500 | $119,400 |
Michigan | $84,200 | $87,900 | $71,500 |
Minnesota | $104,000 | $112,800 | $83,600 |
Mississippi | $65,000 | $72,000 | $58,800 |
Missouri | $81,700 | $89,200 | $63,500 |
Montana | $81,200 | $80,500 | $81,600 |
Nebraska | $89,000 | $93,800 | $80,900 |
Nevada | $84,600 | $84,900 | $81,800 |
New Hampshire | $108,000 | $117,000 | $94,500 |
New Jersey | $117,500 | $117,500 | $71,300* |
New Mexico | $68,700 | $70,800 | $63,800 |
New York | $99,500 | $101,700 | $76,700 |
North Carolina | $80,100 | $83,900 | $66,900 |
North Dakota | $96,800 | $100,800 | $93,100 |
Ohio | $83,300 | $85,800 | $74,900 |
Oklahoma | $76,000 | $82,300 | $64,700 |
Oregon | $91,800 | $97,000 | $71,800 |
Pennsylvania | $90,100 | $92,900 | $72,900 |
Rhode Island | $99,300 | $99,300 | $71,300* |
South Carolina | $78,400 | $81,700 | $58,800 |
South Dakota | $85,400 | $91,000 | $81,200 |
Tennessee | $77,800 | $82,700 | $64,700 |
Texas | $85,300 | $87,800 | $68,800 |
Utah | $95,800 | $97,200 | $83,200 |
Vermont | $92,800 | $109,000 | $85,700 |
Virginia | $103,900 | $111,600 | $67,800 |
Washington | $105,300 | $108,700 | $79,600 |
West Virginia | $67,700 | $73,300 | $59,300 |
Wisconsin | $91,000 | $95,300 | $81,500 |
Wyoming | $88,900 | $91,900 | $87,600 |
United States | $90,000 | $92,900 | $71,300 |
Source for table: hud.gov