WHAT THE STATE DISTRIBUTION SAYSAmong Louisiana’s 13 current published direct-evidence ZIP reports, Zillow ZORI—an observed asking-rent index—ranges from $1,093 in 70816 to $1,899 in 70124, a $806 spread around a $1,507 median. The decision question is therefore not whether any figure represents Louisiana, but which reported rent level can be evaluated alongside household finances, historical movement, and an administrative benchmark. This is a distribution of current published direct-evidence ZIP reports, not every ZIP, neighborhood, or rental property in the state. It is a measured report universe rather than a statewide rental-supply census, so reported dispersion should not be generalized to unreported places or units. The range is best used as a comparative screen, not a household-specific quote or inventory.
Affordability and renter burden answer different questions. The asking-rent-to-income measure compares the current ZORI level with area median household income, while burden is the share of renter households spending 30% or more of income on gross rent; neither is a substitute for the other. Across the reports, asking rent to income ranges from 16.6% to 36.0%, with a 19.7% median; the ACS burden share runs from 38.1% to 66.8%. In 70119, the $1,593 asking-rent level calls for $63,720 annual income under the 30% rule, above the $53,143 area median. 70817 nevertheless has the highest burden share despite a lower asking-rent-to-income reading. These ACS values are five-year ZCTA estimates, an area-level context rather than the finances or lease payments of every renter.
Momentum and volatility likewise come from the direct monthly Zillow series, not ACS or HUD. The 1-year growth result ranges from a 1.2% decline in 70503 to a 27.5% increase in 70605, versus a 1.6% median across the reports. The Lake Charles report also records the maximum annualized volatility, 4.8%, and a 15.9% maximum drawdown. That pairing places the latest increase in a high-variability context rather than presenting it as a smooth rent path. The Lafayette report is classified cooling after its decline, a useful counter-signal to its positive longer-window growth. These historical index measures describe past movement and do not determine future rents.
HUD’s two-bedroom FMR/SAFMR is an administrative bedroom standard, not an observed asking rent or a measure of what a household pays. In these reports, the ZORI-to-HUD comparison ranges from 90.8% in 70816 to 146.9% in 70506, with a 131.1% median. The difference is useful for putting unlike rent measures beside each other, but it is not an affordability verdict and should not be used to recast the HUD standard as a listing price. Neither the ZORI index nor HUD benchmark identifies a particular available property; individual units can differ by bedroom configuration, unit characteristics, timing, and lease terms.
