Housing Counseling Resources

Understanding Housing Counseling

Housing Action Illinois created this What is Housing Counseling? video to help housing counselors explain who you are, what you do, and how you can help them. You’re welcome to embed it on your website by following these instructions »

Helpful Links

Find a Certified Housing Counselor

HUD toolkit

HUD Handbook

HUD Outreach

National Standards

COVID-19 Resource page

 

Making the Case for Housing Counseling

Research on the Benefits of Housing Counseling

  • During 2017, HUD-approved housing counseling network of 1,842 agencies assisted over 880,000 individuals and families across the country.

  • In 2018, 73% of counseled households had incomes below 80% of area median income, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition

  • In a 2021 HUD presentation, Measuring Impact of Rental Counseling on Evictions, it was reported that in the last fiscal year there was a 65% increase in households that received rental counseling and also avoided eviction, as well as a 28% increase in households that received rental counseling and improved their living conditions.
Research on the Barriers to Homeownership
In November 2017, the Urban Institute released a report titled Barriers to Accessing Homeownership that provides data and commentary on three significant barriers to homeownership: saving for a down payment, accessing mortgage credit and housing affordability. The report also offers information about down payment assistance programs which can help borrowers overcome the first barrier to homeownership.
Housing Counseling Helps People Reach their Housing Goals

Housing Action Training Materials

Foreclosure & Bankruptcy

Rentals, Foreclosures, and Bankruptcy Court in the Time of COVID-19 (2020)

Fair Lending

Keeping the ‘Community’ in the Community Reinvestment Act (2020)
Rent to Own (2018)

Fighting Housing Discrimination

Find our brochure on fair lending, info about the Community Reinvestment Act, contact info for fair housing enforcement agencies, and more at our page on fair housing.

Fair Housing Legal Rights and Responsibilities: Tools for Housing Counselors (2020)
Fair Housing Webinars (2016)
Alternative_Handicapped_Accessible_sign.svgIn-Depth Focus on Fair Housing Rights for People with Disabilities
We hosted this webinar on the fair housing rights of people with disabilities in July 2016. The presentation covered reasonable accommodations, reasonable modifications, service animals, illegal inquiries about a person’s disability, effective communication, and other legal issues. It relied on hypothetical scenarios as the main teaching tools. EqualHousingOpportunity

Fair Housing Legal Rights and Responsibilities: Tools for Housing Counselors
In May 2016, we hosted this webinar with expert presenter Jessica Schneider, Staff Attorney in the Educational Equity and Fair Housing Projects of the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. The presentation included information on fair housing laws, legal rights and responsibilities for housing seekers and housing providers, and resources for filing complaints for fair housing violations.

Best Practices

Grant Writing: Best Practices (2017)

 Check out our introductory webinar on best practices for grant writing. This advice is relevant not only when you’re applying for funding from IHDA but also when applying for funding from other sources.

Another good resource for advice on grant writing is Forefront, a statewide membership association for nonprofits, grantmakers, public agencies, and advisors. Forefront hosts webinars and trainings throughout Illinois, some of which are free.

Additional Topics

Dealing with Property of Elderly and Deceased Mortgagors (2019)
Anti-Predatory Lending Database (2018)

Member Resource Library

Housing Action Members can access additional resources via our Resource Library. Reach out to Amina for login information.

Choosing a HUD-Approved CMS

Housing counseling agencies rely on Client Management Systems (CMSs) to track clients and outcomes. Trying to compare these complicated systems can be daunting so we created profiles of each CMS to help housing counselors assess their options. See the CMS Guide 2.0.

Getting Your HUD Certification

Beginning August 1, 2021, housing counselors will be required to become certified via a HUD-administered exam.

Visit our HUD Certification page to learn more.

Latest News for Housing Counselors

HUD Certified Housing Counselor Exam FAQ

HUD Certified Housing Counselor Exam FAQ

by | Mar 1, 2021 | | 0 Comments

In December 2016, HUD issued a Final Rule for the Housing Counseling program that requires that all individuals who provide housing counseling in connection with a HUD program must take and pass a HUD-administered certification exam. HUD Certification Exam Online...

Launching a Housing Counseling Program

by | Jul 17, 2018 | | 0 Comments

“Information is power,” says Guadalupe Gasca. As a housing counselor at Centro Romero, the information that Lupe gives families on the northeast side of Chicago helps them find and keep good apartments and homes.  “Too many people don’t know their rights,...