Emergency rent assistance in Champaign County, IL
Has COVID-19 had an effect on your living situation? The RPC provides emergency rent and utility assistance to Champaign County-Urbana, IL households.

The Governor of Illinois has extended the state’s eviction moratorium until September 18, 2021. Before the moratorium is removed, we strongly encourage you to apply for Emergency Rent Assistance and notify your landlord of your application in order to avoid facing eviction procedures.

To apply for Emergency Rent Assistance, please fill out the application at the bottom of this page (the July 2021 ERA Client Application). Additionally, printed versions of the application are available at the Champaign and Urbana libraries, as well as the RPC’s main office (Brookens Administrative Center, 1776 E. Washington Street in Urbana).

Additionally to your completed application, you must submit the following:

• Identification by photograph
• A duplicate of your lease (or a letter from your landlord confirming your status as a renter)
• A replica of the rent ledger from January 2020 until the present.
• Copies of ALL past-due utility bills (electricity, water, and sewer); bills more than one month old will not be accepted.
• Proof of income for all household members, such as a copy of your household’s Tax Year 2020 Form 1040 as filed with the IRS, or a copy of your household’s last 60 days of income; if applicable, you must also provide proof of unemployment benefits received in the 90 days preceding your application appointment, as well as a printout of weekly Illinois Department of Employment

Send your application, fully filled and signed, together with paper copies of any needed supporting papers, to the following address:

Regional Planning Commission
Attn: ERA Submission
E. Washington Street, 1776
Urbana, Illinois  61802 

You may also send your application in person by leaving it in the drop box located outside the Brookens Administrative Center’s Washington Street entrance. Email submissions will NOT be allowed.

ERA staff will evaluate all completed applications and contact you by phone to schedule an in-person intake appointment to determine eligibility. If your application is rejected due to an incomplete component, ERA personnel will contact you through phone and email to notify you of the rejection and the component that was missing. 

Applicants whose applications have been denied due to inaccuracies are encouraged to resubmit a complete application. If your application is judged to be eligible for help, ERA staff will contact your landlord to acquire further documents (a Landlord Agreement and W-9 form) necessary to complete your application and process payment to your landlord. We anticipate processing payments within 14-30 days of receiving all needed paperwork. The amount of assistance will be determined on an individual basis for each applicant and will not exceed $20,000.

This project is being funded in part or whole by the RPC under federal grant number 20-1892-0-1-806 from the United States Department of the Treasury.

Additional local resources for rent help include the following:

• Residents of the City of Champaign and the Township of Champaign
• Residents of Urbana Cunningham Township Supervisor’s Office receive rent assistance through the RPC’s Homeless Prevention Program.

Other COVID-19 Materials

Resources available to families during COVID-19 Resource Guide for Immigrants in the Contiguous United States

This is a link to a paper that highlights some of our community’s resources – mostly those related to food, transit, and housing. It contains information on donations or goods sought by organizations.