| THE LACK OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN ILLINOIS IS A PERSISTENT PROBLEM
Foreclosures continue to rise in Illinois. In
2009, there were 131,132 foreclosure filings in Illinois—a
104% increase compared to 2007. RealtyTrac 2010.
Loan servicers rarely agree to sustainable
workout plans. Through March 2010, only 11,773
homeowners have received permanent loan modifications through
the federal Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). MakingHomeAffordable.gov
Servicer Performance Report, 2010.
Housing counseling agencies are at capacity. Eighty-three
percent of the HUD-certified agencies are currently operating at
full capacity, while the remaining 17 percent are operating at
less than full capacity, largely due to an inability to fill open
counselor positions. Housing Action Illinois, 2009.
Renters are one of the many hidden victims of the
foreclosure crisis. In 2009, there were 6,560
apartment building foreclosures in the City of Chicago. These
properties contained a total of 20,691 units, averaging slightly
more than three units per filing. Lawyers’ Committee
for Better Housing, 2010.
Workers struggle to afford the rent. A
full-time worker in Illinois must earn $17.44 per hour in order
to afford the cost of an average two-bedroom apartment ($907) without
paying more than 30% of income on housing. Out of Reach, National
Low Income Housing Coalition, 2010.
Seniors, people with disabilities and others with
limited incomes lack affordable places to live. In
Illinois, monthly Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments
for an individual are $674 in 2010, meaning that a person can
only pay $202 a month for housing without having an affordability
problem. Out of Reach, National Low Income Housing Coalition,
2010.
The supply of affordable rental housing is inadequate. For
every 100 extremely low-income renter households, Illinois has
only 53 existing affordable rental units. Sixty-three percent
of extremely low income-renter households pay more than 50% of
their income on housing. Comprehensive Housing Affordability
Strategy (CHAS) data, U.S. Census Bureau, 2010.
Racial disparities still exist regarding access to
safe and decent housing. Illinois has the
highest number and highest percentage of poorly rated nursing
homes where blacks are 50% or more of the residents, of the
states with at least three black-majority homes. “Care
Across Cultural Divide,” The Chicago Reporter, 2009.
Many more people live in nursing homes
and other institutions than necessary. Over 2,700
individuals are housed in state facilities and 5,272 are placed
in private institutions of 16 or more people. The total institutional
population in Illinois is more than double the national average. The
State of the States in Developmental Disabilities, The University
of Colorado, 2008.
Updated May 2010
Click here
to download this fact sheet in PDF format. |