Access to quality affordable housing in Albany Park is becoming more and more difficult for many families and individuals in the neighborhood as it has changed over the years.  In large part due to the availability of affordable housing, Albany Park has traditionally been a port of entry to immigrants arriving from around the world.  However, many affordable rental apartments have been lost due to high-priced condo conversion, resulting in families being displaced from their homes.  The cost of rents for apartments has greatly increased, making it even more difficult for low and moderate income families to find a place to live.  A recent study conducted by APNC found that the average family in Albany Park spends over 47% of their income on rent.  And more recently, foreclosures affecting multi-unit rental buildings have also threatened to displace more families from their homes as banks reclaim property.  APNC leaders work on many different strategies to improve access to affordable housing for community members.  Accomplishments include:

APNC leaders are working to put local landlords in touch with resources to address the reasons they might sell their building or convert it to condo.  Leaders are conducting outreach to landlords to assess their concerns and will be working to organize a large meeting for landlords to come together and receive information about resources available to them in an effort to preserve existing rental buildings.

After an APNC leader’s building was foreclosed and he was repeatedly threatened with illegal eviction attempts, the housing team is working to develop a strategy to improve what happens to tenants when a rental building is foreclosed.  Following pressure from the community, the leaders won a victory from the Cook County Sheriff’s Department who announced that they have changed their policy of evicting tenants of foreclosed buildings.
APNC leaders worked tirelessly for five years with the Balanced Development Coalition of groups in Chicago to win a citywide affordable housing ordinance.  The ARO requires 10% of new condominiums of 10 or more units requiring city assistance (such as a zoning change) to be set aside at reduced prices for first-time homebuyers under a certain income limit.  This policy makes Chicago the largest city in the country with a mandatory set- aside, generates millions of new dollars for affordable housing, and requires Aldermen who were formerly opposed to APNC’s affordable housing platform to do set-asides in their own wards.

Followed up on the commitment from Alderman Mell to set aside 10% of new condo developments in buildings under the same conditions that were later written into the set-aside ordinance. To date, three units have been built and priced at close to half the market value and over 20 more units have been committed to by developers for future projects. APNC has held workshops on home-ownership to qualify residents to enter a lottery for the units, and the 3 units purchased have gone to long-time residents and members of APNC institutions.

APNC Housing Leaders speak to the press following an action at the Cook County Sheriff’s Office which resulted in a changed policy of eviction of tenants in a foreclosure