Question 1

What is the Opportunity Home San Antonio payment standard?

Accepted Answer

A payment standard is the maximum monthly amount Opportunity Home San Antonio uses to calculate a voucher's housing assistance for a given unit size. Opportunity Home San Antonio chooses its payment standards, and HUD rules (24 CFR 982.503) normally require them to fall between 90% and 110% of HUD's Fair Market Rent for the area (the metro-wide FMR, or ZIP-level Small Area FMRs where the authority uses them) — the "basic range". An authority can go above 110% only with an exception payment standard approved by HUD or allowed by HUD notice. Opportunity Home San Antonio is a HUD Moving to Work (MTW) agency, so it can use MTW flexibility to set payment standards outside that usual range.

Question 2

What are Opportunity Home San Antonio's utility allowances for 2026?

Accepted Answer

Opportunity Home San Antonio's current utility allowances took effect on January 1, 2026 (source: Opportunity Home San Antonio HCV flat utility allowance (web page, effective January 1, 2026)). For a 2-bedroom, it is a flat $114 a month. The allowance is added to the contract rent, and that gross rent is what is compared with the payment standard, so a unit with tenant-paid utilities needs a lower rent to fit.

Question 3

Why might Opportunity Home San Antonio's published amounts differ from the HUD figures on this page?

Accepted Answer

The figures here are HUD's FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026) Small Area FMRs. Opportunity Home San Antonio sets its own amounts as a percentage of these (anywhere in the 90–110% basic range), and it adopts new amounts on its own schedule. As a Moving to Work agency, Opportunity Home San Antonio may also use local payment standards that differ from the basic range. Always use Opportunity Home San Antonio's own published schedule for your actual voucher amount.

Question 4

Where can I find Opportunity Home San Antonio's official payment standard schedule?

Accepted Answer

On Opportunity Home San Antonio's website (https://homesa.org) or from your caseworker. Voucher holders also receive the amount for their unit size in their briefing packet.

Question 5

Does a higher payment standard mean the voucher pays more of my rent?

Accepted Answer

It raises the ceiling. The housing assistance payment is the lower of the payment standard or the unit's gross rent (rent plus tenant-paid utilities), minus your total tenant payment — usually about 30% of adjusted monthly income (24 CFR 982.505). If a unit's gross rent is above the payment standard, you pay the difference, and at initial lease-up your share can't exceed 40% of adjusted monthly income.

Question 6

Why do the amounts change by ZIP code?

Accepted Answer

HUD publishes Small Area FMRs for each ZIP code in Opportunity Home San Antonio's area rather than one figure for the whole metro area. Some authorities are required to use them and others may choose to; where an authority uses them, its payment standards vary by ZIP too, so higher-rent neighborhoods get higher ceilings. Check Opportunity Home San Antonio's schedule for the ZIP of the unit, not where you live now.

Utility	Studio	1 BR	2 BR	3 BR	4 BR	5 BR	6 BR
Flat utility allowance
Flat utility allowance (any tenant-paid utilities)	$68	$85	$114	$169	$200	$273	$292

Unit size	Lowest ZIP	Median ZIP	Highest ZIP	90–110% of median
Studio	$780	$1,125	$1,650	$1,013–$1,238
1 bedroom	$850	$1,225	$1,790	$1,103–$1,348
2 bedrooms	$1,020	$1,475	$2,160	$1,328–$1,623
3 bedrooms	$1,320	$1,905	$2,790	$1,715–$2,096
4 bedrooms	$1,530	$2,215	$3,240	$1,994–$2,437

Opportunity Home San Antonio Payment Standards 2026–27

Opportunity Home San Antonio Utility Allowances 2026

HUD rent figures for the City of San Antonio

Contact Opportunity Home San Antonio

HUD rents by ZIP code

Frequently Asked Questions