GCLC to Serve as a Community Partner for Illinois Emergency Housing Assistance Programs
Tapped by the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA), Greater Chicago Legal Clinic will help connect Illinois renters and homeowners impacted by COVID-19-related economic disruptions with programs designed to assist in securing their housing.
With the unemployment rate in Illinois currently estimated at around 20%, many families will not be able to pay their rent or mortgage and are at risk of eviction or foreclosure.
Aware of this impending crisis, the Illinois legislature used funds from Section 5001 of the 2020 CARES Act to create the State Coronavirus Urgent Remediation Emergency Fund.
From this fund, two important programs have now been established:
Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA)—provides payments to the landlords of renters at less than 80% of median income who are behind in their rent as a result of the economic disruptions created by the COVID-19 pandemic, so they may avoid eviction.
Emergency Mortgage Assistance (EMA)—provides payments to mortgage holders at less than 125% of median income to cover mortgage payment arrears arising from the pandemic’s economic disruptions, so they may avoid foreclosure.
The Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA), which administers these programs, is moving as quickly as possible to get this emergency aid to the people who need it. IHDA has developed an online portal for applications to these programs—the first of which, ERA, will be available to accept applications beginning August 10, 2020.
Because demand for both programs is expected to exceed funds available, the final recipients of this assistance will be selected from qualified applications through a third-party random selection process.
Greater Chicago Legal Clinic is an IHDA Community Partner for these programs. In this role, Clinic staffers will help potential applicants understand program qualifications and the application process, as well as providing as much assistance as may be needed to get applications completed and submitted.