Section 8 Fair Market Rent (FMR) for ZIP 08534 - 2027

Location: Trenton-Princeton, NJ | Metro: Trenton-Princeton, NJ MSA

Investment Score for ZIP 08534

Monthly Rent (2BR)

$2,790

Median Price (2BR)

$464,579

1% Rule

0.6%

Annual Yield

7.21%

Based on 1% Rule: A+ (≥1.5%) | A (≥1.2%) | B (≥1.0%) | C (≥0.8%) | D (≥0.6%) | F (<0.6%)

FY 2027 Fair Market Rent Rates

Unit Size	Monthly FMR
Studio	$1,940
1 Bedroom	$2,200
2 Bedrooms	$2,790
3 Bedrooms	$3,410
4 Bedrooms	$3,830
5 Bedrooms	$4,443
6 Bedrooms	$4,976
7 Bedrooms	$5,374
8 Bedrooms	$5,643

Investment Analysis by Bedroom Size

Zillow median home prices vs Section 8 FMR rates (Data: 2026-08-31)

Bedrooms	Monthly FMR	Median Price	1% Rule	Grade
2BR	$2,790	$464,579	0.6%	D
3BR	$3,410	$610,817	0.56%	F
4BR	$3,830	$892,905	0.43%	F
5BR	$4,443	$1,134,705	0.39%	F

Demographics & Housing Statistics

U.S. Census Bureau data (2024)

Population

13,272

Median Household Income

$175,573

Housing Units

5,216

Renter Percentage

11.8%

Occupancy Rate

95.8%

Renter Occupied

588

To determine if you should buy in ZIP 08534 (Pennington, NJ) for Section 8 investments, follow this decision tree:

1) Does FMR $2,670 (zip FY 2024) clear debt service on a $678,250 property?

No: The Fair Market Rent (FMR) of $2,670 per month is insufficient to cover the debt service on a property valued at $678,250. Debt service typically includes mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance, and maintenance costs. For a property of this value, the monthly debt service would likely exceed $2,670, making it unprofitable under Section 8 guidelines.

2) Is market rent $2,730 (ZORI) above, at, or below FMR?

Above: The Zillow Rent Index (ZORI) of $2,730 per month is slightly above the FMR of $2,670. This indicates that the market rent is higher than what Section 8 will reimburse, meaning landlords would need to subsidize the difference between the market rate and the FMR.
At: Not applicable as the ZORI is above the FMR.
Below: Not applicable as the ZORI is above the FMR.

3) Are 11.8% renters + N/A-day DOM enough demand?

It depends: With 11.8% of residents being renters, there is a moderate level of rental demand in Pennington, NJ. However, the Days on Market (DOM) is listed as N/A, which means there isn't enough data to assess how quickly rental properties are leased. This lack of information makes it difficult to predict the speed at which your investment could be occupied.

In conclusion, based on the given data, purchasing a property in ZIP 08534 for Section 8 is not advisable due to the FMR not covering the debt service on a $678,250 property. Additionally, while the market rent is marginally higher than the FMR, the rental demand is moderate but uncertain due to the incomplete DOM data.

Data Sources: FMR data from HUD (2027). Median home prices from Zillow (2026-08-31). Demographics from U.S. Census (2024).

About FMR: Fair Market Rent (FMR) is used to determine payment standards for the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program, initial renewal rents for some expiring project-based Section 8 contracts, and rent ceilings for HOME Investment Partnerships.