The Knox County Housing Authority is currently accepting public housing applications for families and elderly/disabled individuals.
The housing authority has three apartment complexes ranging from 2-4 bedrooms for families and two complexes dedicated to senior/disabled individuals.
To apply for public housing please visit their website at www.knoxhousing.org to print and complete an application. You can also stop by the Housing Authority central office located at 216 W. Simmons St., Galesburg, IL 61401.
Once you have completed you application please mail or hand deliver to the above address.
The housing authority lists the following preferences that may improve your spot on the waiting list as:
Living and or working in Knox County (32 pts)
Employed for 4 or more months (16 pts)
Veteran (8 pts)
Displaced (4 pts)
Applicants that spend more than 50% on rent and basic utilities (2 pts)
For any other questions or for more information please contact the Housing Authority by calling 309-342-8129 or visit their website at www.knoxhousing.org.
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The application may be completed in person at http://nebula.wsimg.com/0598a094b9ff4748a4fb791c058cd721.
Knox County Housing Authority Public Housing Waiting List is managed by Knox County Housing Authority.
Knox County Housing Authority provides affordable housing for up to 703 low- and moderate-income households through its Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher and public housing programs.
This housing agency serves Knox County, Illinois.
After applying, it's a good practice to keep a record of any application that you submit. This will help you keep track of your application, and is especially useful if you apply to multiple waiting lists. You can do this easily with a document on your computer or mobile device, and also with a notebook or piece of paper.
Make sure to write down your application or confirmation number with the application details. This number will be important to reference in the future. Once you have this information written, keep it stored in a place that's easy to access when you need it.
With this information safely stored, all you have left to do is wait to find out if you've been selected for the waiting list.
Depending on the area, it may take weeks or even months to know if you've been selected for the waiting list. Your wait for an announcement is usually the longest in areas with large populations and a high demand for housing assistance.
Check if the public notice states when the housing authority plans to announce the results, or how long it may take to review applications. Contact the housing authority if this information isn't available.
Once all applications are reviewed, the housing authority will either contact everyone who has been placed on the waiting list, or message everyone who applied to check their results.
The housing authority will use the contact information you give in the application to reach you (usually by mail, email, or phone). For this reason, it is very important to put valid contact information on your application. Make sure you keep your contact information up to date, and that you respond quickly if any further action is required.
If you don't get contacted by the housing authority, it might mean that you were not chosen for the waiting list. Sometimes, housing authorities do not contact applicants who were not placed on the waiting list. Check with the housing authority for confirmation.
To check your status on the waiting list, you usually have to log into an online portal, call a phone number, or visit the office. Each housing authority has different ways for you to check your status.
Some housing authorities will give your spot on the waiting list, but others might only confirm that you're still on the waiting list. Make sure that you have your application or confirmation number with you when checking your status.
To update your waiting list application, you usually have to log into an online portal, call a phone number, or submit a form to the office. Each housing authority has different ways for you to update your application.
Make sure that you have your application or confirmation number with you when updating your application.
You can apply for a waiting list that is open until further notice while it stays open for an unknown period of time. Usually, the housing authority is accepting applications until the waiting list closes, but some of these waiting lists never close.
To apply in person, a paper form must be completed at a location set by the housing authority. This place may be a housing authority office, local government building, or another location that is helping with the waiting list opening.
If you are considering applying to live in a Public Housing unit, you may be interested to know who already lives in these units, and what the households tend to look like. Fortunately, we can provide some helpful statistics using HUD's 2023 Picture of Subsidized Households. The following data describes the economic and demographic characteristics of renters who live in Public Housing units provided by Knox County Housing Authority.
At the start of 2024, Knox County Housing Authority was managing 424 Public Housing units. Of the total number of units managed, there were 416 units occupied. This represents 98% of the total number of Public Housing units managed by Knox County Housing Authority.
According to HUD, there is a total of 841 people living in Public Housing units managed by Knox County Housing Authority, with the average number of people per household being 2.
The 416 households living in Public Housing units at the start of 2024 waited on average 3 months before being able to move in. Of those households, 100 occupied their unit in the last year. This represents 24 percent of Public Housing tenants in units managed by Knox County Housing Authority.
The Knox County Housing Authority Public Housing program that this waiting list covers had 98% of its units occupied by households with 2% unoccupied at the start of 2024.
Of the 416 Public Housing households in units managed by Knox County Housing Authority, 165 have at least one child. There are 8 two-parent households in the Knox County Housing Authority Public Housing units, and 157 single-parent households. There were 148 households with children with a female head of household.
The average annual household income for Knox County Housing Authority Public Housing tenant households is $14,301 The average annual income per person is $7,057 The average Public Housing household annual income is 23% of the local Area Median Income.
| Annual Income Range ($) | Number of Households | % of Vouchers |
|---|---|---|
| Less than $5,000 | 62 | 15% |
| $5,000 - $9,999 | 42 | 10% |
| $10,000 - $14,999 | 137 | 33% |
| $15,000 - $19,999 | 42 | 10% |
| $20,000+ | 129 | 31% |
Of all Public Housing households, 157 (37%) receive the majority of their income from wages and/or business. 38 (9%) households receive the majority of their income from welfare programs like TANF, General Assistance or Public Assistance. 178 (42%) households derive the majority of their income from some other source (other than wage or welfare).
For the Knox County Housing Authority Public Housing program, the federal government covers the cost of, on average, $660 per month for each household, which equates to annual cost of $7,920.
HUD refers to the portion of rent paid by the tenant as the Total Tenant Payment, or Family Expenditure.
For the Knox County Housing Authority Public Housing program, the average family expenditure is $280 per month or $3,360 per year. The combined payment from all tenants in the program is $116,480 per month, which is $1,397,760 per year.
The average cost of utilities for renters in this program is $119 per month. It is important to note this is not the actual cost renters will pay for utilities, but an estimate based on the energy cost estimates of the program.
Of the 424 households living in Public Housing units, 220 (53%) live in a studio or one-bedroom unit, 83 (20%) rent a 2-bedroom rental home and 112 (27%) have a 3-bedroom or larger rental. 7% of Public Housing households are overhoused with more bedrooms than people in the household.
40% of Knox County Housing Authority Public Housing program households have a minority head of household who is Black, Native American, Asian or Pacific Islander; or of Hispanic ethnicity.
| Race | Number of Households | % of Households |
|---|---|---|
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0 | 0% |
| Black Non-Hispanic | 154 | 37% |
| Native American/Alaskan | 0 | 0% |
| White Non-Hispanic | 249 | 60% |
| Black Hispanic | 0 | 0% |
| White Hispanic | 4 | 1% |
| Other Hispanic | 0 | 0% |
| Age Range of Head of Household | Number of Households | % of Households |
|---|---|---|
| Under 24 | 50 | 12% |
| 25-50/td> | 208 | 50% |
| 51-61 | 66 | 16% |
| 62-84 | 79 | 19% |
| 85 or Older | 8 | 2% |
You can still apply to online applications without internet access.
If you don't have internet access, go to a local public library that has devices with an online connection.Rose Carr says:
"Affordable Housing Online is a great resource to finding Section 8 waitlists that are open!"