Troubled Buildings Initiative
Chicago
Cook County
The Troubled Buildings Initiative is a coordinated approach from multiple municipal agencies, departments, community partners, and delegate agencies to help restore at‑risk buildings to viable status and prevent them from becoming abandoned.
Background
Troubled buildings, whether vacant or occupied, can damage neighborhoods, pose health and safety risks to neighbors, and depress property values. Irresponsible property management puts the health and safety of tenants at risk and left unchecked, may trigger a cycle of neighborhood disinvestment and deterioration. Yet these same buildings, if repaired and managed properly, can have a revitalizing effect on the surrounding community.
In 2003, the City of Chicago departments of Housing, Buildings, Law, Administrative Hearings, Police, Water, Planning, Streets and Sanitation and Human Services, along with a nonprofit partner, Community Initiatives, Inc. (CII) – an affiliate of Community Investment Corporation (CIC) – developed the Troubled Buildings Initiative (TBI). TBI works proactively to stem the deterioration and loss of viable housing through targeted enforcement efforts and direct intervention with building owners. TBI effectively mobilizes the resources and expertise of eight city departments and CIC to ensure that structures are safe and habitable and helps owners obtain financing to rehabilitate problem buildings.
How It Works
TBI coordinates the response of city agencies to address poor conditions in select buildings that pose a threat to the community. The process begins when a building is referred to the program in any way- either by a city department, alderman, community organization or concerned citizen- often through calling 311.
Once the City receives the referral, the Department of Buildings inspects the property, and if applicable, cites code violations. If the City finds violations, the case is referred to the Department of Law for prosecution.
TBI monitors buildings in the program before, during and after prosecution. Before any action is taken, TBI works with the owner to improve the building and bring it into compliance with City codes. When owners fail to bring their properties into compliance, the city uses a variety of strategies to create a change in ownership, including court-appointed receivers, transferring city liens to CIC for foreclosure, negotiating with lenders for the sale of delinquent notes for foreclosure and purchasing the building for back taxes. In the event TBI is successful in removing a poor manager, City and CIC staff continue to monitor the new building owners to ensure they address code violations. In cases where the building is foreclosed and CIC is the successful bidder, CIC’s goal is to redevelop the property and create affordable housing in the building—in most cases rental, but also some for sale.
Building on the success of these efforts, in 2006, the City expanded the program to include vacant buildings. The goal for the expanded initiative was to reduce the number of deteriorated, unsafe, and underutilized vacant and open buildings in Chicago by at least 75 percent in one year. This is achieved by a collaborative effort involving the Police, Buildings, Law, and Housing departments to: secure the buildings according to municipal code, making them inaccessible to the public and off-limits to potential criminal activity; and rehabilitate, demolish, forfeit, or sell at least half of the buildings.
Goal
To increase tenant comfort and safety and decrease neighborhood blight by working proactively to stem the deterioration and loss of viable housing through targeted enforcement efforts and direct intervention with property owners.
Target
Property managers and owners in Chicago.
Financing
Each fiscal year, the City of Chicago and the nonprofit Community Investment Corporation (CIC) allocate $1 million in Community Development Block Grant funds and $1 million in corporate funds to the program.
Success
As of 2025, CII has evaluated the conditions of nearly 24,000 units within over 1,300 buildings. Of that total, and through combinations of court action, coordination with partners and direct critical repairs when necessary, CII has recovered nearly 18,000 units within over 900 buildings, preserving them as high-quality rental housing for Chicago residents.
Lessons Learned
The initiative requires significant investments of time and resources to handle ongoing tracking of properties, interdepartmental coordination, and strategic interventions.
Contact Information
City of Chicago Department of Housing, www.cityofchicago.org
This case study was last updated in February, 2026.
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