HUD data

Difficult Development Areas in Georgia (2026)

HUD's Georgia DDA designations — metro SDDA ZIP codes and non-metro counties where costs run high against local incomes. Each qualifies for LIHTC's 30% basis boost.
Total DDAs
66
Metro SDDA ZIPs
61
Non-Metro county DDAs
5

Non-metro county DDAs

CountyDDA code
Rabun CountyNCNTY13241N13241
White CountyNCNTY13311N13311
Bulloch CountyNCNTY13031N13031
Troup CountyNCNTY13285N13285
Thomas CountyNCNTY13275N13275

Metro SDDA ZIP codes

ZIPMetro area
30005Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30009Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30017Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30019Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30022Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30024Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30028Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30030Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30039Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30040Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30041Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30045Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30066Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30075Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30096Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30097Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30127Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30144Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30220Meriwether County, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30234Butts County, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30248Butts County, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30269Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30276Meriwether County, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30303Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30305Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30306Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30307Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30308Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30309Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30319Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30322Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30324Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30326Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30327Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30328Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30329Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30338Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30339Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30341Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30342Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30346Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30350Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30363Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30519Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
30519Gainesville, GA MSA
30622Athens-Clarke County, GA MSA
31210Macon-Bibb County, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
31220Macon-Bibb County, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
31314Hinesville, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
31315Hinesville, GA HUD Metro FMR Area
31322Savannah, GA MSA
31324Savannah, GA MSA
31407Savannah, GA MSA
31410Savannah, GA MSA
31411Savannah, GA MSA
31522Brunswick-St. Simons, GA MSA
31527Brunswick-St. Simons, GA MSA
31561Brunswick-St. Simons, GA MSA
31605Valdosta, GA MSA
31632Valdosta, GA MSA
31699Valdosta, GA MSA

What is a Difficult Development Area?

HUD designates a metro ZIP code (SDDA) or non-metro county as a DDA when its Fair Market Rent or construction costs are high relative to area median income. New LIHTC construction in a DDA qualifies for a 130% qualified basis — the same 30% boost QCTs receive. For Georgia investors, DDA and QCT overlays together map where affordable-housing capital is flowing hardest.

Georgia Difficult Development Areas — FAQs

What is a Difficult Development Area in Georgia?

A Difficult Development Area (DDA) is a HUD-designated metro ZIP code or non-metro county where land, construction, and utility costs are high relative to Area Median Income. HUD republishes the Georgia list annually.

What is the LIHTC basis boost for a DDA?

A LIHTC project in a designated DDA may qualify for a 30% increase in eligible basis — the same boost available in a Qualified Census Tract — which raises the credit amount the project can claim.

What is the difference between an SDDA and a non-metro DDA?

Small Area DDAs (SDDAs) are designated at the ZIP-code level inside metro areas, so one Georgia metro can contain both designated and undesignated ZIPs. Non-metro DDAs are designated at the county level.

How do DDAs affect an investor buying a rental?

DDA status signals a high-cost submarket relative to local incomes, which usually means higher purchase prices and construction budgets. It does not change loan eligibility on its own; business-purpose financing is underwritten on the property's economics and lender guidelines.

Local market news & updates

What the latest published data says about Georgia

Every update below is a published figure from a named federal source, shown with the exact period that source covers. Where a dataset is only produced at county or state level, it is labelled that way rather than presented as city data. These are market statistics for informational purposes only — they are not rates, loan terms, or an offer of credit.

  • State dataData through ACS estimates, ACS 5-Year 2023

    Georgia housing costs — ACS estimates, ACS 5-Year 2023

    The most recent published Census reading for Georgia shows a median owner-occupied home value of $272,900, a median gross rent of $1,306 per month. These are survey estimates for the period shown, not live listing prices, and they are the starting point investors use to sanity-check a rent assumption before underwriting a DSCR file.

    Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey

  • State dataData through ACS estimates, ACS 5-Year 2023

    Georgia renter demand indicators — ACS estimates, ACS 5-Year 2023

    Census reports a population of 10,822,590, a median household income of $74,664, a rental vacancy estimate of 10.6% for Georgia. Income and vacancy set the practical ceiling on achievable rent, which is what a DSCR calculation is ultimately built on.

    Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey

Source periods represented above: ACS estimates, ACS 5-Year 2023. Each figure updates only when its publisher releases a new period — we never restamp an older reading with a newer date.

Informational market data only. Nothing in this section is a rate, an annual percentage rate, a payment, a loan term, an approval, or an offer or commitment to lend. Citing a federal dataset does not imply the agency endorses, sponsors or is affiliated with Simply Approved Mortgages LLC (NMLS #2620881). Financing referenced on this page is business-purpose investment property financing.

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