The full income-limit grid
The numbers below are the maximum annual gross household income at each AMI tier in Rhode Island. Read across to see how the ceiling rises with household size; read down to compare the three tiers most federal programs use. The 50% AMI column is the operative ceiling for Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers and most project-based Section 8 buildings. The 30% AMI column is what most priority programs use — Emergency Housing Vouchers, Continuum of Care permanent supportive housing, Section 811 disability housing, and the 75% set-aside HUD requires for new Section 8 admissions. The 80% AMI column is the broadest ceiling, used by Public Housing, HOME-funded programs, and most state-funded down-payment assistance.
| Household size | Extremely Low 30% AMI |
Very Low 50% AMI |
Low 80% AMI |
Family-size detail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-person (an individual renter) | $21,950 | $36,600 | $58,500 | Family of 1 in Rhode Island → |
| 2-person (a couple or two-person household) | $25,100 | $41,800 | $66,900 | Family of 2 in Rhode Island → |
| 3-person (a family of three) | $28,200 | $47,050 | $75,250 | Family of 3 in Rhode Island → |
| 4-person (a family of four) | $31,350 | $52,250 | $83,600 | Family of 4 in Rhode Island → |
| 5-person (a family of five) | $33,850 | $56,450 | $90,300 | Family of 5 in Rhode Island → |
| 6-person (a family of six) | $36,350 | $60,600 | $97,000 | Family of 6 in Rhode Island → |
| 7-person (a family of seven) | $38,850 | $64,800 | $103,650 | Family of 7 in Rhode Island → |
| 8-person (a family of eight) | $41,400 | $68,950 | $110,350 | Family of 8 in Rhode Island → |
Limits shown are statewide approximations derived from HUD's published state-level Area Median Income and HUD's standard family-size adjustment factors (70/80/90/100/108/116/124/132% for 1- through 8-person households). Actual HUD income limits are published per metro / non-metro county and can be 10–25% higher in high-cost coastal areas. The source is HUD User's Income Limits dataset.
How Rhode Island compares
Rhode Island's 4-person Area Median Income — the anchor figure HUD uses for every other family-size calculation — is $104,500. That puts Rhode Island in the upper tier of state AMIs, similar to the high-cost Northeast and the Pacific coast. The income ceilings are correspondingly higher, but so is the cost of housing in most of the state, so the practical "headroom" between income and rent is often narrower than in lower-AMI states.
HUD adjusts the 4-person figure for other household sizes using fixed factors. A 1-person household qualifies at 70% of the 4-person limit; a 2-person at 80%; a 3-person at 90%; a 5-person at 108%; a 6-person at 116%; a 7-person at 124%; an 8-person at 132%. For households larger than 8, HUD adds 8 percentage points per additional person.
What counts as "income" in Rhode Island
HUD's definition of "annual income" is broad. It counts wages and salaries, self-employment net income, Social Security benefits (including SSI and SSDI), pensions, regular gifts received, child support and alimony actually received, and asset income (interest, dividends, rental income, the imputed return on assets above $50,000). It does not count one-time payments like tax refunds or insurance settlements, the income of household members under 18, the earnings of a live-in aide, food stamps (SNAP), or the first $480 of any earned income from a household member who is a full-time student over 18.
HUD then deducts a standard $480 per dependent and a $525 elderly/disabled household deduction (plus actual childcare and medical expenses above 3% of income for elderly/disabled households) to arrive at "adjusted income" — the figure used to calculate your monthly tenant share of rent (typically 30% of adjusted income).
Programs available in Rhode Island
- Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) · income cap ≤ 50% AMI · Local Public Housing Agency
- Public Housing · income cap ≤ 80% AMI · Local Public Housing Agency
- Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) · income cap ≤ 50% AMI · Property owner under HUD contract
- Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) · income cap ≤ 60% AMI · Property owner / state housing finance agency
- HOME Investment Partnerships Program · income cap ≤ 80% AMI · State or local housing agency
- USDA Rural Development Section 521 · income cap ≤ 80% AMI · USDA Rural Development
- Emergency Housing Vouchers (EHV) · income cap ≤ 50% AMI · Local Public Housing Agency
- Continuum of Care (CoC) · income cap ≤ 30% AMI · Local CoC lead agency
- Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly · income cap ≤ 50% AMI · Nonprofit owner under HUD contract
- Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities · income cap ≤ 30% AMI · Nonprofit owner / state housing agency
- HUD-VASH (Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing) · income cap ≤ 50% AMI · PHA + VA Medical Center
- Family Unification Program (FUP) · income cap ≤ 50% AMI · PHA + child welfare agency
Where to apply in Rhode Island
The application process runs at the Public Housing Agency level. Rhode Island has 26 PHAs, each with its own waiting list, application window, and local preferences. The largest agencies are listed below. If you don't see your city, try the nearest larger one — many PHAs administer vouchers for surrounding counties under cooperation agreements.
- Pittsfield RI Housing Authority — Pittsfield, RI · 605 units · 4,593 vouchers · Closed (last update varies)
- Dover Housing Authority — Dover, RI · 1,651 units · 3,023 vouchers · Closed
- Housing Authority of Clinton — Clinton, RI · 408 units · 4,041 vouchers · Open with preferences
- Jackson Housing Authority — Jackson, RI · 643 units · 2,171 vouchers · Closed
- Housing Authority of the City of Burlington — Burlington, RI · 582 units · 2,023 vouchers · Open
For the complete Rhode Island rental assistance overview — including a step-by-step application walkthrough — see Rental Assistance in Rhode Island.