California Bay Area counties now consider low income to be 6 figures

A recent report from the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) revealed that the income threshold for being considered "low-income" in the Bay Area has reached six figures.

The 2025 income limits, published by HCD in April, show that the low-income classification for a single-person household has surpassed $100,000 in four Bay Area counties: Marin, San Mateo, San Francisco, and Santa Clara. The department determines these limits using federal income data, adjusted for household size, and then defines five categories of income as a percentage of each area’s median income. These thresholds are used to determine eligibility for housing assistance.

Santa Clara County now has the highest low-income threshold for a single-person household at $111,700. The amount is a $33,150 increase since 2020. Marin, San Mateo, and San Francisco each have thresholds set at $109,700, marking a $12,100 rise in the same period.

According to a report by SFGate, the findings come as the Bay Area has faced rising economic inequality among residents, with a national study concluding that San Jose is the most difficult place in the country to live comfortably. Although the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic saw population declines in cities like San Francisco and San Jose, which temporarily softened rental demand, that trend is reversing.

“[Bay Area] rent prices did not skyrocket during COVID,” Apartment List senior research associate Rob Warnock told SFGate. Warnock explained that it was due to people leaving the region and not due to a housing boom.

As there is a resurgence of interest in the region, particularly due to the growth of the AI sector, Warnock warned that housing supply may not keep up. “There’s going to be more energy on the demand side of the rental market, with people moving in and even being interested again, but we haven’t been building homes that are going to accommodate those people,” he said.

He also noted the region’s lack of new building permits, adding, “What this is really telling us is the construction pipeline will be quiet today and for the coming few years at least,” Warnock warned.