Illinois State Housing Authority

Applying for housing authority assistance needs a lot of paperwork, but is very straightforward. You start by reaching out to your local HA. You can open our free site to find the closest to your location. You complete the housing options assessment, which is an online form. You also bring the supporting documents: id, proof of income, and details regarding your special situation. After, you get all these documents and crop them at your local housing authority.

After your application is received, you will get a written notification of your application. If you get accepted, you will sign a lease with your HA.

You can apply for the housing choice voucher program by reaching out to the local housing authority office. You fill out their application form and provide all supporting documents. After you have all the forms and supporting documents, you drop them at the local office, and then you are placed on a waiting list. If approved, you will receive a mail at your current address stating the details. You will then notify your landlord. After you have been accepted onto the housing choice voucher program go to the housing office and sign the contract.

When getting a place to live with the housing authority, it is good news as your emergency is now solved. Well, there are always the questions of what happens next and how long can you stay in that place? The short answer is if you keep qualifying for the same requirements that you got the place in the first time. That means that if your income stays below 80% of the local median income, you are good. There is always the requirement of good behavior.

You also must take care of your part of the rent. The housing authority provides help, but the idea is that you still cover a small part of the rent and expenses. You also need to make your payments on time.

The housing authority provides help with rent money. They can also help you with a very frequent housing problem: dead-beat landlords. If you have an issue with your landlord, and they do not do anything even after you complain, then hoping that things will change is a waste of time. It is time to act on your own and there are many resources that you can use to help yourself.

There is the rental protection agency, which then reports to higher housing authorities for inappropriate landlord conduct. The service can be completed online and there is a small fee for each application. The rental protection agency will take care of money issues, house code violations, or any management problems.

You are also welcome to go to the local police, which is free and immediate assistance. If you live in a place where the landlord is getting housing vouchers from you, then you can complain directly to the Department of Housing and Urban Development. You can reach them at this number : (800) 685-8470.

The most common HA program is Section 8. There is a long waiting list for this program. With the Covid-19 pandemic, the number of people that have applied for the vouchers of Section 8 has skyrocketed, hence there are a lot of application delays. As of right now, the housing authority waiting list is 1 year and a half. The public housing authority programs favors specific groups of people or families that fit certain profiles. Priority is given to veterans, to the elderly, to the people that are exiting domestic violence.