Most of Ames is in Story County, where a full-time job needs to pay at least $26.81 an hour before taxes to take home four times the typical studio rent.
Across the 5 ZIP codes in Ames with HUD rent figures, studio rents run from $890 to $1,010 a month. At the middle rent, $990, a full-time job would need to pay $30.40 an hour before taxes.
What the standard would be at each ZIP code's own studio rent. The calculator and the official standard use the county figure.
| ZIP | County | Studio rent | Pay needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50010 | Story County | $910/mo | $27.79/hr |
| 50011 | Story County | $890/mo | $27.14/hr |
| 50012 | Story County | $990/mo | $30.40/hr |
| 50013 | Story County | $1,000/mo | $30.73/hr |
| 50014 | Story County | $1,010/mo | $31.06/hr |
Under the Four Times Rent standard, a full-time job in Ames needs to pay at least $26.81 an hour before taxes, about $55,770 a year. That is the figure for Story County, where the typical studio rent is $880 a month.
Yes. Across the 5 ZIP codes in Ames with HUD rent figures, studio rents run from $890 to $1,010 a month. At the middle rent of $990, the pay needed would be $30.40 an hour.
The minimum wage in Story County is $7.25 an hour. The Four Times Rent standard there is 3.7 times that.
The Four Times Rent standard: a month of full-time work (160 hours) should take home at least four times the typical rent on a studio apartment in the county where the work is done. Rents: HUD FY2027 Fair Market Rents. Taxes: 2026 federal and state income taxes plus Social Security and Medicare, for a single filer. Why four times rent? · Method and data downloads