The 2025 Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP) draft, which determines a significant portion of the City of Chicago’s affordable housing resources, was issued on April 15 by Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Chicago Department of Housing (DOH). 

Released every two years, the QAP sets the City’s evaluation criteria and process for awarding Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), a critical funding tool that the City utilizes to support affordable housing development. LIHTC is a federal program that incentivizes public-private partnerships in affordable housing development by providing tax credits to investors in exchange for significant equity investments in qualified low-income rental housing developments. It is the most significant resource for the production and preservation of affordable rental housing in the United States today. 

The 2025 QAP draft is being released jointly with a memo outlining the forthcoming changes to the Architectural Technical Standards Manual (ATSM), a policy document maintained by DOH that outlines design and contracting requirements for developers, architects, and general contractors building housing with City funds. 

DOH will work closely with residents, advocates and developers to finalize the QAP this year. The draft will be open for public comment until Thursday May 15, 2025, at 4:00pm CT. Comments can be submitted via email at DOH2025QAP@cityofchicago.org. DOH will also host a virtual public meeting on Tuesday May 6, 2025, at 1:30pm CT. The link will be posted here prior to the meeting. Additionally, the Illinois Housing Council will sponsor a QAP overview and feedback opportunity for developers on April 24, 2025. prior to the meeting.

“The Chicago Department of Housing strives to create affordable housing opportunities across all of our 77 communities,” Housing Commissioner Lissette Castañeda said. “The QAP is one of the most important tools we utilize to accomplish this, and we look forward to finalizing it in partnership with community stakeholders.” 

The Johnson Administration’s Cut the Tape initiative, launched in December 2023, influenced updates to the City's QAP and ATSM, with the goal of streamlining affordable housing development by eliminating administrative barriers.   

As part of these efforts, DOH has revised the QAP to establish clearer review timelines, reduce duplicative documentation requirements, and prioritize projects that align with affordability and equity goals. Specifically, the 2025 QAP: 

• Formalizes a two-step application process, providing a greater degree of procedural transparency and predictability  
• Distinguishes between "Threshold Requirements" (minimum eligibility criteria) and "Selection Preferences" (policy-aligned priorities) to add clarity to how proposals are evaluated and makes expectations around eligibility and competitiveness more transparent. 
• Prioritizes proposals using public land - including City-owned, sister-agency, and CHA parcels - for affordable housing development. 
• Expands commitment to supportive housing by dedicating targeted funding specifically to expand the supply of housing for supportive housing populations. 
• Strengthens community engagement requirements by requiring alignment with a defined "Community Revitalization Strategy" for certain types of new construction development proposals and by requiring specific community engagement information in connection with the two steps in the application process. 

DOH also is in the process of updating the ATSM to clarify design expectations and modernize construction guidelines — all with the intent of minimizing costly delays during the design and permitting construction phases of development. The Memo published today describes a number forthcoming and under consideration changes to the ATSM. DOH expects to issue a complete ATSM draft in June, including changes to general contractor selection and various contracting and subcontracting requirements. 

The draft of the 2025 QAP and the memo regarding the 2025 ATS manual can be found here.