•June 8, 2016•

Renters must earn $19.98 to afford a two-bedroom apartment in Ill., while nearly $225 million in emergency state funding for affordable housing is being held up to due to state budget impasse

In order to afford a modest, two-bedroom apartment in Illinois, renters need to earn $19.98 per hour. This is Illinois’ 2016 Housing Wage, revealed in a national report released today. The report, Out of Reach 2016, was jointly released by Housing Action Illinois, a statewide coalition that fights to protect and expand the availability of quality, affordable housing throughout Illinois, and the National Low Income Housing Coalition, a Washington, DC- based research and advocacy organization.

Nearly $225 million in state funding that would help alleviate the shortage of affordable housing was just included in a larger emergency funding bill for human service programs that the General Assembly recently passed with bipartisan support. The bill, SB 2038, includes funding for homeless shelters, supportive housing, rental subsidies, and housing construction. This funding—as well as additional funds for affordable housing—would have been available 11 months ago if not for the state budget impasse. On May 18, the bill was sent to Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner for his consideration.     Login or Subscribe to read the rest of this story.