The Illinois Court-Based Rental Assistance Program is Open

‍Tenants Apply Today‍
A tenant should apply first. If eligible, their landlord will be sent an email inviting them to complete their section of the application. An application will not be considered complete until both the tenant and landlord finish their sections.
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The Illinois Court-Based Rental Assistance Program (CBRAP) provides emergency rental assistance to tenants and landlords across Illinois who have pending case(s) in eviction court. Eligible applicants may qualify for up to $10,000 that can be applied to past due rent, up to $700 for court costs, and up to two months' future rent to prevent housing displacement. Applicants can check their CBRAP application status here.
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If you are at risk of eviction, please contact a legal aid organization or a HUD-approved housing counseling agency right away.

‍You may be eligible for CBRAP if:

  • You are in a court eviction proceeding due to nonpayment.
  • Proof of citizenship is not required.
  • Your household income is at or below 80% of the area median income, adjusted for household size. (See the income limits for your county here.)
  • You rent/ lease an apartment in Illinois.
Illinois homes, receiving rental assistance

Documentation Requirements

Tenants

  • Government-issued photo ID
  • Proof of address (dated within 60 days)
  • Proof of household income
  • Evidence of past-due rent
  • Eviction court complaint, summons, and court-case number (name must be listed on the eviction document)
  • Current signed lease (if available)
  • Proof of public assistance (if applicable)
  • Valid email addresses for tenant and landlord

A complete list of acceptable documents is available here.

Landlords

  • Proof of ownership
  • Proof of unpaid rent (ledger is required)
  • Current signed lease (if available)
  • Government-issued photo ID, Certificate of Good Standing, or Articles of Incorporation
  • Fully executed and current property management agreement (if applicable)
  • Eviction court complaint, summons. and court case number
  • Valid email addresses for tenant and landlord
  • The check payee must match the plaintiff listed on the eviction filing

A complete list of acceptable documents is available here.

What Will Happen After You Apply?

IHDA expects extremely high demand for CBRAP assistance and will review completed applications as quickly as possible. Our goal is to notify applicants of funding eligibility within 45 days from the start of your application review.

Already applied? Check the status of your CBRAP application here. 

If your landlord is unresponsive? Find information about Tenant Direct payments here.
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  • A sample CBRAP Grant Agreement for tenants is available in English.
  • A sample CBRAP Grant Agreement for landlords is available in English.
  • CBRAP Grant Agreements in additional languages can be found on the CBRAP Resources page.
Couple looking over documents

Language Assistance

The CBRAP call center has English, Spanish, and Polish speaking staff available. If you require assistance in a language other than those three, please email CBRAP.info@ihda.org. In the email, please include your name, phone number, the language you are seeking assistance in, and your availability between 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Monday through Friday. Our customer relations staff will contact you to schedule an over the phone appointment with a representative and a translator.

All CBRAP translation and call center assistance is free.

     Languages available through translation services:
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AlbanianDariOromoHakka-ChineseSpanish
AmharicDutchPashtoHebrewSwahili
ArabicFarsiPersianHindiTagalog
ArmenianFilipinoPolishHmongTamil
BanglaKoreanPortugueseIboTeddim
BengaliKurdishPunjabiIndonesianThai
BosnianLaotianRomanianItalianTibetan
BulgarianLithuanianRussianJapaneseTigrinya
BurmeseMacedonianFrenchKarenTongan
CambodianMai MaiFulaniKarenniTurkish
Canadian FrenchMalayalamGeorgianKinyarwandaTwi
CantoneseMandarinGermanKirundiUkrainian
ChinMandingoGreekSamoanUrdu
ChineseMarshalleseGujaratiSerbianVietnamese
Chin-HakhaMongolianHaitian Creole Serbo-CroatianYoruba
CroatianNepaliHakha-ChinSomali
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Resources for Tenants and Landlords in Eviction Court

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