About Housing Action Illinois
To increase and preserve the supply of quality, affordable, accessible homes in Illinois for low- and moderate-income individuals and families and to build a coalition that advocates, educates, strengthens capacity, and sustains resources to end homelessness and expand affordable housing.
Focus Areas
Ending homelessnessRental affordability / affordable rentSustainable homeownershipFair housing / housing discriminationHousing counseling & capacity buildingPolicy advocacyTraining and workforce developmentAmeriCorps / national service
Who They Fund
homebuyers and homeowners (including those at risk of foreclosure)renters at risk of eviction or housing instabilitylow- and moderate-income households seeking housing assistance
About Housing Action Illinois
Housing Action Illinois centers its grantmaking on HUD housing counseling infrastructure and pass-through support to nonprofit agencies serving renters, homebuyers, homeowners, and households facing housing instability. A clear pattern in the recent grants is repeated support to the same Illinois counseling and housing organizations over multiple years, including Access Living of Metropolitan Chicago, Lake County Housing Authority, and Center for Changing Lives. Those awards are tied to the HUD Comprehensive Housing Counseling Program and the Housing Stability Counseling Program, showing that the foundation funds both counseling services and the organizational capacity needed to deliver them. The foundation also uses AmeriCorps VISTA placements as part of its model. Through Housing Action Corps, it places members with community-based organizations to expand programs, launch projects, and strengthen staffing. In the grant record, this same intermediary role appears alongside direct subgrants and administrative support, indicating that Housing Action Illinois does not only fund service delivery; it also helps maintain the network that delivers that service. Its work is aimed at quality, affordable, accessible homes in Illinois for low- and moderate-income individuals and families.
What Housing Action Illinois Funds
Housing Action Illinois gives around housing counseling and housing stability through named HUD-linked programs. In 2025, it awarded $87,271 to Lake County Housing Authority in Grayslake for a pass-through grant for the HUD Comprehensive Housing Counseling Program, and the same organization received $81,974 in 2024 for the HUD Comprehensive Housing Counseling Program and Housing Stability Counseling Program (HSCP). It also supports agencies that work on foreclosure prevention and homeownership counseling. South Suburban Housing Center in Homewood received $87,332 in 2024 for the HUD Comprehensive Housing Counseling Program, while Home DuPage in Wheaton received $94,637 in 2024 for the HUD Comprehensive Housing Counseling Program and HSCP. A third strand is support for community organizations in Chicago and nearby areas. Northside Community Development Corporation received $82,408 in 2024 for the HUD Comprehensive Housing Counseling Program and HSCP, and Center for Changing Lives received $71,767 in 2025 for the HUD Comprehensive Housing Counseling Program.
How Housing Action Illinois Gives
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$1.3M
Total Assets
$2.9M
Total Revenue
$4.4M
Total Expenses
$4.1M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $15K and $56K, with a median of $30K.
25th Percentile
$15K
Median
$30K
75th Percentile
$56K
Geographic Reach
Local6 states funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
Sharon Legenza
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