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USDA eligibility map: Louisiana

About 98.0% of Louisiana's area is in USDA-eligible rural areas, by HeritageDeed's estimate from USDA Rural Development's published eligibility map, the 17th highest share among the 50 states, DC and Puerto Rico. 53 of 64 parishes have no ineligible area at all, and Orleans Parish is entirely ineligible. 19 Census places in Louisiana lie mostly inside ineligible areas, including New Orleans city, Lafayette city, Baton Rouge city, Shreveport city and Monroe city.

98.0%
of the area is USDA eligible (estimate)
932
square miles mapped ineligible
53 of 64
parishes with no ineligible area
19
Census places mostly ineligible

Check a Louisiana address

USDA eligible area by parish

The share of each parish's area that is USDA eligible, and the places (cities, towns and census-designated places) at least half inside ineligible areas. These are estimates; check any single property with the lookup.

USDA eligible share of area and mostly ineligible places by parish in Louisiana
parishArea eligibleMostly ineligible places
Acadia Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Allen Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Ascension Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Assumption Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Avoyelles Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Beauregard Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Bienville Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Bossier Parish94.4%Bossier City city
Caddo Parish86.3%Shreveport city
Calcasieu Parish95.3%Lake Charles city
Caldwell Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Cameron Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Catahoula Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Claiborne Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Concordia Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
De Soto Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
East Baton Rouge Parish80.4%Baton Rouge city
East Carroll Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
East Feliciana Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Evangeline Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Franklin Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Grant Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Iberia Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Iberville Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Jackson Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Jefferson Davis Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Jefferson Parish89.8%Metairie CDP, Kenner city, Elmwood CDP, River Ridge CDP, Jefferson CDP, Harahan city
Lafayette Parish78.0%Lafayette city
Lafourche Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
LaSalle Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Lincoln Parish95.6%Ruston city
Livingston Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Madison Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Morehouse Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Natchitoches Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Orleans Parish0%New Orleans city
Ouachita Parish88.0%Monroe city, West Monroe city, Brownsville CDP, Lakeshore CDP
Plaquemines Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Pointe Coupee Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Rapides Parish96.5%Alexandria city, Pineville city
Red River Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Richland Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Sabine Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
St. Bernard Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
St. Charles Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
St. Helena Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
St. James Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
St. John the Baptist Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
St. Landry Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
St. Martin Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
St. Mary Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
St. Tammany Parish99.3%None mostly inside; part of the area is ineligible
Tangipahoa Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Tensas Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Terrebonne Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Union Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Vermilion Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Vernon Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Washington Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Webster Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
West Baton Rouge Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
West Carroll Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
West Feliciana Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible
Winn Parish100%None: the whole parish is eligible

How USDA decides what is rural

The rural-area definition is section 520 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1490): open country and places not part of or associated with an urban area with up to 2,500 people, up to 10,000 if rural in character, or up to 20,000 outside a metropolitan statistical area with a serious lack of mortgage credit for lower and moderate-income families. Areas that lost rural status in the 1990 to 2020 censuses stay rural until 2030 census data arrive if they have 10,000 to 35,000 people and meet the same conditions. Income is a separate test, applied to the household by the lender and USDA.

For other address-level designations in Louisiana, the free census tract lookup shows the income level and QCT and DDA status, and Louisiana has 150 designated Opportunity Zone tracts (Opportunity Zone lookup).

Questions

Is Louisiana eligible for USDA loans?

Much of it is. About 98.0% of the state's area is outside USDA's ineligible areas (932 of about 47,150 square miles are ineligible). 53 parishes are entirely eligible. Most people live in the larger towns, which are often ineligible, so check the specific address.

Which Louisiana parishes have the least USDA eligible area?

Orleans Parish (0% eligible), Lafayette Parish (78.0% eligible), East Baton Rouge Parish (80.4% eligible), Caddo Parish (86.3% eligible), Ouachita Parish (88.0% eligible). The share is of land area, by HeritageDeed's estimate from USDA's map; eligibility is decided for each property.

Which Louisiana towns are not eligible for USDA loans?

Places USDA's map shows as mostly inside an ineligible area include New Orleans city, Lafayette city, Baton Rouge city, Shreveport city, Monroe city, Metairie CDP, Bossier City city and Lake Charles city. The county table on this page lists every place that is mostly ineligible. Edges matter: part of a town, or land just outside it, can be on the other side of the line, so check the address.

How do I check a Louisiana address for USDA eligibility?

Enter the street address in the lookup on this page. It locates the address and checks it against USDA's published rural eligibility map. It is a screening: Rural Development makes the final determination on a complete application, and household income is a separate test (USDA's income eligibility tool).

When was the USDA eligibility map for Louisiana last updated?

The ineligible areas on USDA's map for Louisiana carry an effective date of July 25, 2023. USDA updates the map from ineligible-area changes sent in by its state offices. The statute keeps formerly rural areas of 10,000 to 35,000 people rural until data from the 2030 census arrive, if they still meet its conditions.

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Legal references

Areas are computed by HeritageDeed: estimates, not USDA figures. USDA's map is not a final determination; Rural Development decides on a complete application. HeritageDeed is not affiliated with USDA.

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