Lake County Housing Authority Receives $17,366 from HUD for Its Comprehensive Counseling Programs
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced it was giving $517,501 in grants to 23 organizations in Illinois with Housing Counseling Programs as a part of its on-going efforts to help families find decent housing opportunities and prevent future foreclosures. As a result of these funds, Illinois households will have greater options to find housing or keep their current homes. Additionally, HUD awarded $29 million to national, regional and multi-state counseling agencies that may also serve to positively benefit communities in Illinois. HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan expressed that the “HUD-approved counseling agencies… this funding supports are crucial in helping struggling families on a one-to-one basis to manage their money, navigate the home buying process, and secure their financial futures.” Antonio Riley, HUD's Midwest Regional Administrator, acknowledged how this “money will go a long way to make sure Illinois families get the information and help they need to be prepared for buying and keeping their homes.”
The Lake County Housing Authority (hereinafter LCHA) was approved as a comprehensive counseling agency by HUD in 1992. Currently, the LCHA provides housing counseling services that relate to mortgage delinquency and default resolution counseling, services for homelessness counseling, pre-purchase counseling, predatory lending counseling and rental housing counseling. During the past fiscal year, LCHA was able to provide these counseling opportunities to 479 clients. With the allotted funding from HUD of $17,366, LCHA hopes to expand upon its counseling and further serve the needs of the local community.
LCHA Board Chairman R. Delacy Peters expressed how “truly proud [he is] that LCHA was one of only two Housing Authorities in Illinois to receive this funding” and reiterated the organization's unyielding commitment to maintain its large number of counseling service options available. This grant is particularly special as HUD had eliminated its Housing Counseling Program; from September 2011 up through March of 2012, there had not been funding received to facilitate the operation of this program and LCHA had to maintain this offering to its clients on its own accord. Chairman Peters expressed that these funds from HUD will be a “great asset moving forward for the Lake County Housing Authority and we hope it is only a sign of what's to come in the future.”
Lake County Housing Authority is committed to providing affordable, safe, and sanitary housing for the residents of Lake County. For more information about LCHA, go to: www.lakecountyha.org.