; Low Income Apartments For Rent in Watsonville, CA

Apply to Watsonville Apartment Waiting Lists

Pippin Orchards Apartments

56 Atkinson Lane
Watsonville, California
Rent Assisted
HOME
Call For Rent
1-3 BR

Jardines Del Valle

76 Murphy's Crossing Rd
Watsonville, California
Rent Assisted
LIHTC
Income Based
2-4 BR

Via Del Mar

124 W Beach St
Watsonville, California
Rent Assisted
LIHTC
HOME
Income Based
1-3 BR

Schapiro Knolls

33 Minto Rd
Watsonville, California
Rent Assisted
LIHTC
Income Based
1-4 BR

San Andreas

295 San Andreas Rd
Watsonville, California
Rent Assisted
LIHTC
Income Based
1-4 BR

Villas Del Paraiso

340A Paraiso Dr
Watsonville, California
Rent Assisted
LIHTC
Income Based
1-4 BR

Pacifica Apartments

201 Pacifica Blvd
Watsonville, California
Rent Assisted
LIHTC
USDA S. 538

Independence Square

1355 Madison St
Watsonville, California
Subsidized
Senior
S. 202

Casa De Exito

107 California St
Watsonville, California
Subsidized
Supportive
S. 811 Supportive

Tierra Linda Apartments

490 Beck Street
Watsonville, California
Rent Assisted
LIHTC

Pacific Terrace Associates

131 Landis Avenue
Watsonville, California
Rent Assisted
LIHTC
HOME

Pajaro Court

170 Pennsylvania Dr
Watsonville, California
Rent Assisted
LIHTC
$586-955
2-3 BR

Lincoln Square

1202-1208 Lincoln Street
Watsonville, California
Subsidized
RDRA
Call For Rent
Studio BR

71 Del Rio Ct

71 Del Rio Ct
Watsonville, California
$3,700
3 BR

504 El Rio St

504 El Rio St
Watsonville, California
$2,800
2 BR
Showing Results 1-15

There are 793 low-income apartments in Watsonville that offer reduced rents to eligible households.

Rental assistance programs support 316 low-income homes in Watsonville where households pay rent based on how much they earn. For 2024, elgible households participating in federally assisted housing pay an average of $745 towards rent each month.

Affordable rent data for some communities last confirmed on July 2nd, 2024. Subdsidized rents typically change once a year based on federal guidance.

Public Housing Agencies Serving Watsonville, California

Public Housing Agencies operate federally assisted affordable housing programs at local levels on behalf of HUD. Notably, housing agencies are responsible for managing Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher, Public Housing, and Project-Based Voucher waiting lists within their jurisdiction.

Housing Authority Programs
Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV); Public Housing; Veteran Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH); Family Unification Program (FUP)
Go to the California Public Housing and Low-Income Apartments Waiting Lists page for openings near Watsonville.

Watsonville, California Affordable Housing Data

Income Based Apartments in Watsonville, California

Watsonville features 316 income based apartments. Tenants of income based apartments typically pay no more than 30% of their income towards rent and utilities.

Low Rent Apartments in Watsonville, California

There are 793 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Watsonville.

Housing Choice Vouchers in Watsonville, California

On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Watsonville landlords $1,400 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $700 towards rent in Watsonville.

The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Watsonville, California for a two-bedroom apartment is between $3,649 and $4,459.

2024 Watsonville, California Fair Market Rents and Housing Choice Voucher Payment Standards

Fair Market Rents can be used to better understand the average housing costs of an area. Fair Market Rents are used by HUD to establish payment and rent standards for federal rental assistance programs like the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program.

Studio One BR Two BR Three BR Four BR
Watsonville, California Fair Market Rent $2,849 $3,085 $4,054 $5,000 $5,504
Watsonville, California Payment Standard Range $2,564 to $3,134 $2,777 to $3,394 $3,649 to $4,459 $4,500 to $5,500 $4,954 to $6,054

Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.

Watsonville, CA Affordable Housing Snapshot

Total Affordable Apartment Properties 27
Total Low Income Apartments 1,153
Total Housing Units with Rental Assistance 316
Percentage of Housing Units Occupied By Renters 60.39%
Average Renter Household Size 3.88
Average Household Size 3.67
Median Household Income $46,018 ±$3,454
Median Rent $1,250 ±$51
Percentage Of Renters Overburdened 67.72% ± 5.42pp
Total Population 52,543

Population and Household Demographics

Watsonville is a city in Santa Cruz County, California with a population of 52,543. There are 14,216 households in the city with an average household size of 3.67 persons. 60.39% of households in Watsonville are renters.

Income and Rent Overburden in Watsonville

The median gross income for households in Watsonville is $46,018 a year, or $3,835 a month. The median rent for the city is $1,250 a month.

Households who pay more than thirty percent of their gross income are considered to be Rent Overburdened. In Watsonville, a household making less than $4,167 a month would be considered overburdened when renting an apartment at or above the median rent. 67.72% of households who rent are overburdened in Watsonville.

Area Median Income In Watsonville

Affordable housing program eligibility is always determined by one's income. Each household's income is compared to the incomes of all other households in the area. This is accomplished through a statistic established by the government called the Area Median Income, most often referred to as AMI. The AMI is calculated and published each year by HUD.

HUD often uses an area larger than a city to determine the AMI because HUD anticipates those searching for housing will look beyond individual cities during their housing search. For Watsonville, the AMI is calculated from all households within Santa Cruz County.

In Watsonville, HUD calculates the Area Median Income for a family of four as $132,800

Most affordable housing programs determine eligibility based on the percent of AMI a given household's income is. Among the programs that determine eligibility based on the AMI are Section 8, HOME, LIHTC, Section 515, 202 and 811.

Rental Assistance in Watsonville

Rental assistance is a type of housing subsidy that pays for a portion of a renter’s monthly housing costs, including rent and tenant paid utilities. This housing assistance can come in the form of Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, project-based Section 8 contracts, public housing, USDA Rental Assistance (in Section 515 properties) as well as HUD Section 202 and 811 properties for elderly and disabled households.

Income Qualifications for HUD Rental Assistance in Watsonville

1 Person 2 Person 3 Person 4 Person 5 Person 6 Person 7 Person 8 Person
30% AMI Income Limits
Renters earning up to 30% of the Watsonville AMI may qualify for rental assistance programs that target Extremely Low Income households.
$34,600 $39,550 $44,500 $49,400 $53,400 $57,350 $61,300 $65,250
50% AMI Income Limits
Renters earning up to 50% of the Watsonville AMI may qualify for rental assistance programs that target Very Low Income households.
$57,650 $65,900 $74,150 $82,350 $88,950 $95,550 $102,150 $108,750
80% AMI Income Limits
Renters earning up to 80% of the Watsonville AMI may qualify for rental assistance programs that target Low Income households.
$92,500 $105,700 $118,900 $132,100 $142,700 $153,250 $163,850 $174,400