Housing Voucher Program in Illinois is currently experiencing a hiccup as the waitlists in the area are mostly closed.
According to progressillinois.com, the Housing Voucher Program is made to provide rental assistance so low- income families can have a chance and access to government- subsidized properties and to avoid being homeless. However, families who are seeking and needing affordable rental housing could not even get a chance to be included in the program's waiting list.
A report from Housing Action Illinois and the Social IMPACT Research Center shows that out of 71 public housing authorities, 51 or 72 percent have closed voucher waiting lists.
The report author said "This means that people in need of affordable rental housing in most every part of Illinois do not have the opportunity to even get in line to secure a federally-funded subsidy that would alleviate their poverty and put their household in a better position to thrive. Closed waiting lists for Housing Choice Vouchers aren't a new phenomenon but the last time this information was collected in 2007, the number of PHAs with closed voucher waiting lists was significantly lower -- 'only' 56 percent of all PHAs with a voucher program."
According to wbez.org, open waiting lists are usually located in rural areas and very limited. Also, there are more families that need the assistance than the vouchers being handed out to them. Illinois has 82,000 families relying on housing vouchers but the deficit in affordable rental units have reached 321, 394 already.
Chicago Housing Authorities has the highest number of vouchers awarded in the state but they are only allowed to release 51,000 vouchers. Currently, the housing agency handed out 44,000 vouchers and it is expected to go up to 46,000 by next year. They said "We appreciate Heartland Alliance's hope that Congress will expand the number of vouchers, but we are not counting on that alone to meet the need."
What are your thoughts about the need of additional housing vouchers and units itself? Sound it in the comments!