Harris County, TX

Within the 12 selected direct-evidence ZIP/ZCTA matches assigned to Harris County, Zillow’s June 2026 ZORI—a typical observed asking-rent index—runs from $968 to $1,926, a $958 spread around a $1,363 median. This is a broad local range, not a universal county price point: the county ZORI is $1,600, with a 0.16% year-over-year decline. The decision question is therefore whether currently available units, with comparable size and lease terms, fit a household’s budget in the portion of the market being considered. The selection covers 184,412 renter households, but it is a targeted evidence set rather than a market census.

Parallel benchmarks show why those figures cannot be merged. In ZIP 77036, the $968 ZORI sits alongside a $1,042 ACS 2024 five-year median gross-rent estimate; in ZIP 77007, the corresponding measures are $1,926 and $1,969. The ACS figures summarize survey-reported gross rent over a different period, rather than a current asking-rent index. HUD’s FY 2026 administrative FMR for two-bedroom units spans $1,340 to $2,360 across this set, while direct ZORI is 69.2% to 87.8% of the associated HUD value. That gap is a comparison of distinct constructs, not evidence that a unit is eligible, affordable, or priced below market.

ACS 2024 five-year ZCTA estimates add household conditions, not listing prices. Renter prevalence varies substantially across the selected set. The share of renter households spending at least 30% of income on gross rent ranges from 34.9% to 55.5%, and vacancy ranges from 3.2% to 15.7%. These measures do not establish why any ZIP differs. They do show that the choice is a trade-off: a lower displayed ZORI does not by itself resolve rent burden, and a higher vacancy estimate does not guarantee a particular unit’s availability, concession, condition, or all-in monthly cost. Use burden as a budget-stress screen and vacancy as a broad stock signal, then test both against live property terms.

Coverage and geography constrain the reading. The displayed ZIPs were assigned to Harris County using the largest HUD residential-address share, even though a ZIP can cross county lines; every displayed match has a near-complete county share, but ZCTAs still are not identical to USPS delivery ZIPs. The direct-ZORI selection is not exhaustive and should not be read as a neighborhood inventory. Before acting, verify the property’s current advertised rent, unit size, utilities, parking and other mandatory fees, concessions, deposit, lease duration, availability date, income rules, and the relevant program’s bedroom and geographic standard. Those property-level checks are necessary because index, survey, and administrative benchmarks answer different questions.