Working* in Housing Policy in Chicago

A very incomplete guide

Who is this for?

Housing policy, defined broadly, is an important and rewarding field in which to work. It can also be, however, a very opaque one to young people just starting their careers; people who have moved to a new city; or even people who already have a career in the field. The purpose of this document is to make housing work in Chicago a little bit less opaque, and to support anyone who wants to enter the field, either professionally, as a volunteer, or even just an observer — especially people who don't otherwise have a clear way in — whether they are just graduating from high school or college, moving to Chicago from elsewhere, or just gaining an interest in housing at any point in life.

Though it will likely change over time, right now it primarily consists of a modestly organized list of organizations that do work that includes housing policy — again, broadly construed.

What counts as "housing policy"?

This document emphatically rejects that "housing policy" only happens in City Council or the state legislature, or by people who have the word "policy" in their job title. Most housing policy, in fact, is enacted by people who administer programs or provide direct services through the decisions they make about how to do their jobs. (And certainly most knowledge about housing policy is gained and disseminated by the people doing those jobs, or the people directly interacting with and experiencing housing programs, or the gaps they leave in the safety net.)

What counts as "working"?

As I say above, this is not meant to be only for people looking for full-time professional work. People looking to volunteer, organize, attend neighborhood meetings or City Council hearings, or just observe the field, are all in mind for this document.

What is the "housing continuum"?

While affordable housing is often referred to in ways that make it sound like a monolith — or else sometimes described as rigidly segmented between rentals, ownership, affordable, and "luxury" market rate — it's more accurate to think of housing as a spectrum of overlapping forms of tenure and price-setting.

The diagram below is an attempt to capture one way of thinking about a "housing continuum," showing where four types of housing land, roughly, along a spectrum of income levels. Income here is represented by "AMI," or Area Median Income, a scale that the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development uses to measure affordability. It is calculated at the regional level, meaning the entire metropolitan area of Chicago shares an AMI scale. The 2025 scale is shared below the continuum diagram.

2025 Area Median Income (AMI) limits table showing income thresholds at 30%–140% AMI for household sizes 1–6
2025 AMI limits (effective April 1, 2025), by household size
HUD maximum monthly rents by AMI tier (30%–120%) and number of bedrooms (0–4), broken down by subsidy type
HUD maximum monthly rents by AMI tier and bedroom count

What local housing media is in Chicago?

What about national sources?

Beyond the major outlets (NYT, WaPo, etc), housing-specific sources of news and analysis include:

What professional development spaces are there?

Please let me know about more of these! You can find me on LinkedIn or BlueSky under my full name (see bottom of the page).

What kinds of organizations do people in housing policy work for?

Government

In a field focused on public policy, one obvious place to work is the public sector. These include:

The City of Chicago

Within the City, most housing-related work will exist in three main places:

  • The Mayor's Office. Typically, relevant positions are under the Chief of Policy (titles like Policy Analyst, etc.) or under the Deputy Mayor for Business and Neighborhood Development (BND). Almost all positions in the Mayor's Office are Shakman-exempt, meaning they aren't necessarily posted on the City's jobs portal and don't have to go through normal hiring procedures.
  • The Department of Housing (DOH). The largest and most varied set of positions. Most DOH positions work in program implementation, either in multifamily (largely executing LIHTC deals) or "single-family" (1–4 unit buildings, focused on homeownership). There's also a bureau of preservation focused on programs that rehab vacant or distressed properties. DOH also has explicitly policy-related roles focused on internal policymaking, legislation, community engagement, planning, and evaluation. DOH positions will generally not be Shakman-exempt.
  • The Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS). More focused on homelessness-related policy and implementation, including the shelter system and support services, as well as coordination with the Continuum of Care.
  • The Department of Planning and Development (DPD). Fewer housing-specific functions than one might imagine, but interesting roles related to zoning and planning, in particular on regional planning teams behind proactive corridor rezonings.
  • City Council. 50 alderpeople, all with staff. Some have policy directors; some have development directors managing proposed projects requiring Council action. The Committee on Housing and Real Estate is the most housing-policy-focused committee.

The Chicago Housing Authority

A "sister agency" of the City with its own budget and governing body (the CHA Board), appointed by the Mayor and confirmed by City Council. The largest landlord in Chicago, the Chicago Housing Authority operates or oversees over 20,000 public housing units and close to 50,000 tenant-based vouchers. Roles related to development, voucher administration, resident services, policy, data, and planning.

Cook County

Suburban Cook is almost exactly the size of Chicago; Cook County overall is the second largest county by population in the country. The Office of the President has a policy team; housing-relevant roles also in the Department of Planning and Development. The Housing Authority of Cook County is the second largest housing authority in Illinois. The Cook County Assessor's Office establishes property values for taxation purposes and administers the Affordable Housing Special Assessment Program.

The State of Illinois

Some roles may be based in Springfield, but many are in Chicago:

Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP)

Chicago's Metropolitan Planning Organization; largely focuses on transportation-related issues, but Planning and Regional Policy and Implementation teams touch on housing, zoning, and transit-oriented development.

Metropolitan Mayors Caucus

Not itself public sector, but an instrument of suburban Chicago municipal governments providing advocacy and technical assistance, including on housing issues. mayorscaucus.org

Research (University-Based)

These organizations tend to do less explicit advocacy, and sometimes (but not always) hire predominantly people already affiliated with their associated university.

Research and Advocacy

These organizations tend to advocate for policy change through research and sharing technical expertise via direct engagement with policymakers and elected officials.

  • Center for Neighborhood Technology. Does deep research and partnerships with governments and organizations around the country.
  • Chicago Area Fair Housing Alliance. A membership-based organization that performs research and advocacy on fair housing issues.
  • Chicago Coalition to End Homelessness. Provides research, advocacy, and organizing around homelessness issues.
  • Chicago Rehab Network. Founded in the 1970s as a coalition of community development organizations; does state and local housing and community development research and advocacy.
  • Civic Committee. Housed at the Commercial Club; does not generally work directly on housing but addresses some related issues, such as transportation.
  • Elevated Chicago. A citywide coalition advocating for and running programming related to equitable transit-oriented development, including housing.
  • Health and Medicine Policy Research Group. Works on a variety of health-related justice issues, including housing.
  • Housing Action Illinois. The largest statewide coalition of progressive housing organizations; very involved in a wide range of state housing legislation and advocacy campaigns.
  • Illinois Black Advocacy Initiative. Does not have a specific focus on housing, but its advocacy has included housing priorities.
  • Illinois Justice Project. Focused on reform of the criminal justice system; advocacy includes a significant amount of work around reentry housing.
  • Impact for Equity (formerly BPI). A law and policy center known for its work on public housing, including as litigants in the historic Gautreaux racial segregation case against the CHA. The author of this document is the Housing Director at IFE.
  • Latino Policy Forum. Advocates on housing issues, among others, on behalf of Chicago's Latino community.
  • Metropolitan Planning Council. Founded in the 1930s; one of the oldest and largest non-governmental planning and policy organizations in the city; has traditionally had a close relationship with City Hall.
  • Preservation Compact. The policy arm of the Community Investment Corporation; does work focused on preservation of legally restricted and "naturally occurring" affordable housing.
  • Woodstock Institute. Housing work focuses on lending and finance, especially with respect to homeownership.

Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs)

These organizations directly provide financial services with a social mission, often in gaps left by market-driven lenders.

Community- and Membership-Based Advocacy Organizations

These groups tend to advocate and wield power by organizing constituents and communities and their lived experiences.

Development, Service, and Advocacy Organizations

These organizations tend to predominantly provide direct services or do housing development, but may also have explicit policy divisions.

These organizations provide legal services and representation as well as engaging on policy-related work.

Philanthropy

Notable Reports

Reports from the last decade or two that capture a particular issue, moment in time, or have been especially influential in shaping housing advocacy and policy in Chicago.

Energy Efficiency

Housing Stock

Ownership

Racial Equity

Rental Housing Affordability

Zoning

About the Author

Daniel Kay Hertz is currently Director of Housing at Impact for Equity, a law and policy center. Previously he served as Director of Policy, Research, and Legislative Affairs for the Chicago Department of Housing; Research Director for the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability; and Senior Fellow at City Observatory. He is also the author of The Battle of Lincoln Park: Urban Renewal and Gentrification in Chicago (Belt, 2018). He grew up in Albany Park and West Ridge and currently lives in Edgewater.

He can be found on LinkedIn and BlueSky under his full name.