The Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) has published its 2027-28 qualified allocation plan (QAP), which establishes the rules and criteria for the state’s low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) program.
“Affordable housing builds stronger communities and ensures families, seniors, and people with disabilities can live stable and dignified lives,” said Gov. JB Pritzker. “This qualified allocation plan reflects extensive research, public engagement, and the realities of today’s housing market. By prioritizing cost containment, creative solutions, and equitable access to resources, Illinois is helping communities create and preserve income-restricted affordable homes while advancing a broader strategy to expand housing opportunity across the state.”
The new QAP advances IHDA’s commitment to cost containment and creative solutions to affordable housing, support for vulnerable populations, and greater equity in housing investments statewide, according to officials.
Key changes include:
- Updated allocation goals to promote a more equitable distribution of 9% LIHTC resources statewide;
- A Preliminary Project Assessment clarification process to help development teams better understand and meet program expectations;
- A simplified scoring structure organized around general scoring criteria and three policy tracks: Creative Solutions, Permanent Supportive Housing, and Targeted Markets;
- Expanded cost-containment incentives, including up to six points for projects that contain hard costs;
- A new Creative Solutions policy track that rewards preservation, density, innovative development models, and replicable approaches to creating and preserving affordable housing; and
- Updated tiebreaker criteria that prioritizes higher unit counts along with lower per-unit construction costs.
The Creative Solutions track also encourages development teams to test replicable approaches that can lower costs or shorten construction timelines, including modular, factory-built, and prefabricated construction techniques. The QAP also rewards meaningful partnerships with less-experienced affordable housing development entities, helping build a broader and more diverse pipeline of future affordable housing sponsors, as well as incentives for projects that adopt low-barrier tenant screening practices designed to expand access for people who face significant barriers to housing, said IHDA.