The Illinois Housing Development Authority has received two national awards for its work to train new affordable-housing developers and to strengthen its workplace culture.

The agency, known as IHDA, was recognized on Oct. 5 at the 2026 National Council of State Housing Agencies annual conference in Detroit, Michigan. IHDA won two Annual Awards for Program Excellence:

  • Rental Housing: Encouraging New Construction and Promoting Preservation — for its Next Generation Capacity Building Initiative, known as Next Gen.
  • Management Innovation: Human Resources — for its IHDA Core Values program.

"These awards reflect IHDA's commitment to building a stronger, more inclusive housing system and a workplace culture grounded in shared values," said IHDA Executive Director Kristin Faust. "By investing in our employees and equipping the next generation of affordable housing developers with the tools and support they need to succeed, we are expanding opportunity and strengthening communities across Illinois."

Next Gen developer program

According to IHDA, the Next Gen initiative equips emerging developers with technical skills, industry access and hands-on support to enter affordable housing development and compete in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program, a primary financing tool for building rental housing. Participants are trained in team building, deal structuring, navigating IHDA programs and property management, with coaching and networking.

IHDA said seven Next Gen alums have received Low-Income Housing Tax Credit awards from IHDA and Chicago's Department of Housing.

Core Values initiative

IHDA said it formalized its Core Values — People, Teamwork, Equity & Inclusion, Innovation, and Respect — and worked to embed them across the employee experience, including in annual reviews, hiring and employee recognition. The agency said the values are intended to shape workplace culture, align behaviors and improve recruitment and retention.

About IHDA

IHDA describes itself as a self-supporting, mission-driven state agency that finances the creation and preservation of affordable housing in Illinois. The agency said that since it was established in 1967, it has delivered more than $30 billion in financing toward the purchase, development or rehabilitation of 343,475 homes and apartments for low- and middle-income households. More information is available at www.ihda.org.

The National Council of State Housing Agencies is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that has given its Annual Awards for Program Excellence since 1984. Entries are judged on criteria including creativity, replicability and response to state housing needs. A list of winners is available at www.ncsha.org.

Source: the original release