What is Area Median Income or AMI for short?

Each year, the federal government calculates the median income for communities across the country. Area median incomes are adjusted for family size.  The median divides the income distribution into two equal parts: one-half of the cases falling below the median income and one-half above the median. The US Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) uses the median income for families to calculate income limits for eligibility in a variety of housing programs. HUD estimates the median family income for an area in the current year and adjusts that amount for different family sizes so that family incomes may be expressed as a percentage of the area median income. For example, a family's income may equal 80 percent of the area median income, a common maximum income level for participation in HUD programs. In Fort Collins - Loveland Colorado, the median family income was $75,200 / year in 2009.  The table below shows how the median family income is distributed based on household size and gross annual income:

2009 HUD Income Guidelines