Are you in need of financial support to maintain or secure stable housing?

The Flexible Rental Assistance Program (FRAP), funded by the Village of Oak Park’s Affordable Housing Fund,offers time-limited financial assistance to promote housing stability and mitigate housing loss due to an unexpected financial hardship.

To determine your qualification for participation in the Flexible Rental Assistance Program (FRAP), follow these two essential steps: first, verify your income eligibility, and second, reach out to the Suburban Cook Call Center for expert guidance. For more detailed instructions, please continue scrolling down this page.

Program Objective

The FRAP program has two primary objectives:

  • Housing Stability Intervention: To offer a flexible pool of funds that provides financial assistance to individuals and families, preventing them from experiencing homelessness or helping them transition out of homelessness.

  • Strengthen Crisis Response: To enhance Oak Park's crisis response system for families at risk of homelessness, ensuring early intervention and support.

Who We Serve

The FRAP program aims to serve households that meet the following criteria:

  • Households at 30%-50% of the Area Median Income (AMI)

  • Those most vulnerable to financial and housing crises

  • Homeless families identified by school districts D97 and D200

What FRAP Covers

The Flexible Rental Assistance Fund provides the following financial support:

  • Rental assistance for eligible households

  • Utility assistance provided when no other charity-utility (LIHEAP) payments are accessible through ComEd

  • Security deposits to secure stable housing

  • Short-term emergency expenses (e.g., food vouchers, transportation) under one month

Please note that FRAP should be utilized as a fund-of-last-resort for eviction prevention services, and households may qualify under other state or federal eligibility guidelines.

What FRAP Does Not Cover

While FRAP is intended to be flexible, the program may not be able to assist every household.  Due to limited funding, and in an effort to help with direct financial assistance, the following limitations will be placed on the program:

  • Housing Services: FRAP will not cover housing location assistance, housing vouchers, or housing retention services. Households are encouraged to seek these services from existing connections or available service providers.

  • Landlord/Property Management Concerns: The program will not handle issues related to managing landlords or property management.

The program will not pay for:

  • Tax Payments: FRAP will not cover federal, state, or local tax payments, including property tax payments.

  • Past-Due Child Support: Assistance will not be provided for past-due child support payments.

  • Fines/Legal Fees: FRAP cannot cover fines or legal fees related to civil or criminal offenses with which an applicant has been charged (e.g., traffic tickets or retaining an attorney for legal matters).

  • Direct Cash Assistance: FRAP will not send or provide cash directly to applicants.

  • Rental Payments to Family Members: The program will not make rental payments to applicants renting from a family member.

 

FRAP Eligibility Information & Guidelines

 

Program Eligibility

To be eligible for FRAP assistance, households must meet the following criteria:

  • Reside, formerly, reside, work, or go to school in Oak Park.

  • A homeless individual is defined as “an individual who lacks housing (without regard to whether the individual is a member of a family), including an individual whose primary residence during the night is a supervised public or private facility (e.g., shelters) that provides temporary living accommodations, and an individual who is a resident in transitional housing.” A homeless person is an individual without permanent housing who may live on the streets; stay in a shelter, mission, single-room occupancy facility, abandoned building or vehicle; or in any other unstable or non-permanent situation. [Section 330 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C., 254b)].

  • An individual may be considered to be homeless if that person is “doubled up,” a term that refers to a situation where individuals are unable to maintain their housing situation and are forced to stay with a series of friends and/or extended family members.

  • Previously homeless individuals who are to be released from a prison or a hospital may be considered homeless if they do not have a stable housing situation to which they can return. Recognition of the instability of an individual’s living arrangements is critical to the definition of homelessness.

  • Oak Park households who are residing in a temporary living situation and at risk of homelessness AND ineligible for traditional Homeless Prevention funds AND referred by Oak Park area service providers, the library, park district, and hospitals.

Funding Guidelines

 The amount of approved assistance will be determined on a case-by-case basis, taking into consideration the following factors:

  • level of need

  • length of assistance required to become stable

  • household's ability to contribute to their rental housing needs

  • the minimum amount of assistance needed to become stable

Income and Employment Guidelines

 

1. Households shall have incomes between 30%-50% of the area median income. Grantee agrees to provide the Village of Oak Park with the annual income of each household assisted.

  • At least one adult member of the applicant’s household must be able to document income at the time of the application.

2. Households who have no income AND are in the process of becoming eligible that:

  • Have the potential for income and are verified to be connected to an employment program (Goodwill Workforce, Easter Seals, Inspirations, CARA, etc.).

  • Are in the process of or need help in applying for mainstream benefits that will result in cash assistance.

How To Get Started

 

To determine your eligibility for the Flexible Rental Assistance Program (FRAP), please follow these steps:

  1. Verify Program Eligibility: Ensure that you meet the income requirements for the program.

  2. Contact the Suburban Cook Call Center:

    If you believe you are eligible or are calling on behalf of an individual as an agency representative, please call the Suburban Cook Call Center at 877-426-6515. Depending on your role, provide the following information:

    • For Individuals Inquiring About Eligibility: Inform the call center that you are calling to inquire about your eligibility for the FRAP program.

    • For Agency Representatives Referring Individuals:

      • State the name of the agency you are representing

      • Mention the name of the individual you are assisting

      • Explain that you are referring this individual to Housing Forward for FRAP eligibility