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.
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 65,934 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.
