Low Income Apartments and Affordable Housing For Rent in Cook County, IL

Discover affordable housing in Cook County where there are 750+ housing opportunities based on income and household needs like accessible units for seniors or persons with disabilities. Find and apply to these low income apartments now.

Axley Place

3235 Milwaukee Ave, Glenview, Illinois 60025

5150 Northwest Highway

5150 N. Northwest Hwy., Chicago, Illinois 60630

Cleland Place

1925 Wilmette Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois 60091

The Kensington Senior Residences

401 E. Kensington Rd., Mount Prospect, Illinois 60056

North Park Village

5801 N. Pulaski Rd., Building H, Chicago, Illinois 60646

Lawson House

30 W. Chicago Ave., Chicago, Illinois 60654

Fifth Avenue Apartments

800 South 5th Avenue, Maywood, Illinois 60153

Rauner Family Veteran Studios

2908 - 2920 W. Roosevelt Rd., Chicago, Illinois 60612

Berwyn Apartments

3137 South Oak Park Avenue, Berwyn, Illinois 60402

Senior Suites of Auburn Gresham

1050 W 79th St, Chicago, Illinois 60620

St Leo Campus for Veterans

7750 S Emerald Ave, Chicago, Illinois 60620

Roosevelt Square

1222 W Roosevelt Rd, Chicago, Illinois 60608

Hansberry Square at Legends South

4034 S State St, Chicago, Illinois 60609

Britton Budd Apartments

501 W Surf St, Chicago, Illinois 60657

Kenmore Apartments

5040 N Kenmore Ave, Chicago, Illinois 60640

Englewood Apartments

901 W 63rd Pkwy, Chicago, Illinois 60621

Pomeroy Apartments

5650 N Kenmore Ave, Chicago, Illinois 60660

Mattie Butler Apartments

6230 S. Dorchester Ave and 6146 S. Kenwood Ave, Chicago, Illinois 60637

Congressman George W. Collins

1401 S Blue Island Ave , Chicago, Illinois 60608

Greenwood Park Apartments

1015 E. 47th Street, Apt 1B, Chicago, Illinois 60653

The Hourly Wage Needed to Afford A Safe, Modest 2 Bed Apartment In Cook County, Illinois
$32.46/hour
$18.46 (+132%) more than Illinois minimum wage and $25.21 (+348%) more than the Federal minimum wage.
Learn More About Cook County, Illinois Affordable Housing ↓

What HUD offices serve Cook County, Illinois?

Public Housing Agencies operate federally assisted affordable housing programs at local levels on behalf of HUD. Notably, housing agencies are responsible for managing Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher, Public Housing, and Project-Based Voucher waiting lists within their jurisdiction.

Operates the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV), Public Housing, Section 8 Project-Based Voucher (PBV) programs for Cook County, Illinois.

Go to the Illinois Public Housing and Low-Income Apartments Waiting Lists page for openings near Cook County.

How many renters live in Cook County, Illinois?

The County of Cook County has 5,109,292 people living in 2,110,498 households.

There are 1,851,986 renters living in 899,430 renter households in this County. Renters make up 36.25 percent of the population living in Cook County.

What is the rental market like in Cook County, Illinois?

There are an estimated 2,270,952 housing units in the Cook County area. Of these, 943,427 units are rental homes, making up 42 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Cook County, Illinois, there are 1 rental units.

What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Cook County?

The rental vacancy rate in Cook County is 4 percent. This is a lower than average vacancy rate. When rental vacancy rates are low there are fewer available units. Rents tend to be higher as more people compete for scarce housing.

How many rental units are in Cook County for each bedroom size?

Occupied Rental Units by Size in Cook County
Studio One-Bedroom Two-Bedroom Three-Bedroom Four+ Bedrooms
94,369 266,306 338,377 161,702 28,593
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Cook County

A large number of apartments in Cook County have two or fewer bedrooms. Seniors and young professionals especially may have more success finding an apartment that meets their needs.

How many renter households in Cook County are overburdened by housing costs?

Among renter households in this market, 48 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 26 percent of households are extremely rent overburdened. When renters pay too much for their housing, it leaves little money for other necessities like food, clothes, or medicine.

The federal government says that renters are cost-burdened if they pay more than a third of their monthly income for rent and utilities.

How Much Is Rent in Cook County

Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $1,399 to $2,583. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.

Bed Size 2024 Fair Market Rents
Studio $1,399
One BR $1,507
Two BR $1,714
Three BR $2,182
Four BR $2,583
2024 Fair Market Rents in Cook County, Illinois

How many units are rented at Fair Market Rent (FMR) in Cook County?

Renters with a Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher must select a home that is at or below the area’s Fair Market Rent. Markets with a large share of units above FMR tend to have longer search times to find a qualified unit, while those with a large share of units below FMR tend to have more choices and shorter search times. The share below FMR can vary by size of unit, as shown in the table below.

These are the approximate number of units renting below the FMR in this market:

Unit Size Count of Units Below FMR Percentage of Total Units Below FMR
Studio 63,165 67 percent
One BR 185,859 70 percent
Two BR 195,805 58 percent
Rental Units Below FMR in Cook County, Illinois

How many affordable rental units are in Cook County?

There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Cook County, Illinois including the following:

Federal Program Unit Count
Low Income Housing Tax Credit 52,583
Public Housing 14,841
Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance 33,014
Mod Rehab Project-Based Rental Assistance 409
Section 236 Rental Assistance 218
Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly 3,595
Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities 570
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Cook County, Illinois

Rental units may be funded in part by multiple federal programs.

Income Based Apartments in Cook County, Illinois

Cook County features 65,852 income based apartments. Tenants of income based apartments typically pay no more than 30% of their income towards rent and utilities.

Low Rent Apartments in Cook County, Illinois

There are 36,419 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Cook County.

Housing Choice Vouchers in Cook County, Illinois

On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Cook County landlords $800 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $400 towards rent in Cook County.

The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Cook County, Illinois for a two-bedroom apartment is between $1,543 and $1,885.

Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.