A recent large-scale survey of people about to be released from Illinois prisons sheds light on the complex housing needs of this population. The results of the survey are helping to inform ongoing efforts by Illinois policymakers and advocates to remove housing-related barriers to successful prison reentry.

Loyola's Center for Criminal Justice worked with the Illinois Reentry Council (IRC) on the design of the Housing Assessment Survey, which asked detailed questions about the housing histories, housing plans, and housing needs of people nearing the completion of their prison sentences. With the help of IRC staff and volunteers, the survey was administered in paper form in the Spring of 2025 at four adult prisons in Northern and Central Illinois (Logan Correctional Center, Dixon Correctional Center, Illinois River Correctional Center and Lincoln Correctional Center). A total of 965 completed surveys were returned, and responses were entered by Loyola students and analyzed by Center staff. Center Codirector Dave Olson presented findings from the survey at the Illinois Reentry Council Fall Quarterly Meeting on September 3, 2025.

In addition to eliciting demographic and other background information, the Housing Assessment Survey asked a total of 15 questions. Some concerned respondents’ housing histories during the three years before they were incarcerated. Others asked for details about their housing plans after release—where they intend to live and with whom, how they will be expected to contribute to the household, how long they will be able to stay, and so on. And still others sought to identify mental, physical and legal challenges that might complicate efforts to find housing in individual cases, as well as openness to accessing support services following return to the community.

Because only one of the four prisons where the survey was administered (the Logan Correctional Center) held women in custody, the sample was 18% female and 82% male. (Nevertheless, women were overrepresented in the sample; women make up only a little over 5% of the overall population of the Illinois Department of Corrections.)

Other demographic characteristics of the sample were more difficult to pin down—almost a third of respondents declined to specify their age and ethnicity, for example. When asked to give the amount of time they had served to date, 17% did not answer; of those that did, most (81%) indicated that they had served fewer than 4 years in prison.

Where Did You Live Before?

One of the most striking findings from the survey concerned the complexity and instability of the housing arrangements many people reported for the years leading up to their incarceration. A total of 28% of the men and 42% of the women responding to the survey said they were unsheltered (sleeping on the street, in cars, in abandoned buildings, on trains, etc.) or unhoused (in temporary shelters, group homes, halfway houses, etc.) at least part of the time during the 3 years before prison. Eviction was also common: 16% of the men and 31% of the women said they had been evicted at some point in their lives. Less than a third of those surveyed reported never experiencing housing instability in the three years before incarceration, and 18% of the men and 29% of the women said their housing had been unstable “all the time.”

While most of those responding to the survey said they had lived in their own apartment or house at least some of the time in the three years before they were imprisoned, only 16% of the men and 22% of the women reported only living in their own apartment or house. Even those who had their own place, or shared living quarters with someone else, did not necessarily make rent or mortgage payments. In fact, women who said they’d lived in an apartment or house before prison were more often contributing services like child or elder care than paying money.

Where Will You Go from Here?

By design, the survey sought to gauge the experiences and plans of soon-to-be-released individuals, so most of those surveyed were getting out very soon. Of those who provided a projected release date, about 85% said they would be released before the end of 2025. Their geographic destination, when they specified one, was most often Chicago or Cook County (45% of the men, 35% of the women). But substantial numbers (22% of the men, 32% of the women) expressed a desire to start over in a new city, different from the one where they’d lived in before.

The survey asked people to indicate what kinds of living arrangements they were considering for their first year after release. A few (10% of the men and 8% of the woman) said they hadn’t thought about it. But most had plans. The most common arrangement being considered was living with family, friends, or romantic partners, followed closely by living alone in a house or apartment. For respondents who expected to live with others, the survey asked for details, including whether they would be expected to contribute anything toward rent or mortgage payments. Only half of the women said they expected to contribute rent or mortgage money to the household, compared with 69% of the men. But substantial minorities (14% of the men, 16% of the women) said they didn’t know what would be expected of them, and more than 30% overall had not discussed it with those they hoped to live with. Similarly, more than 40% indicated they had not discussed how long they would be able to stay.

Still, respondents tended to be very optimistic about their housing prospects following release: 69% said their plans to live with friends, family or romantic partners were “set and confirmed” and that they were “very confident” about them. And more than 80% felt that their post-prison living arrangements would provide the supportive, safe environment they would need to be successful.

What Could Go Wrong?

The survey also asked for information about individual histories, needs, and circumstances that could complicate efforts to find or keep suitable housing after release. For example, 15% of men and 23% of women reported (1) housing instability in the three years prior to incarceration, (2) mental health issues while incarcerated, and (3) plans to live with children under the age of 18 after release. That translates to more than 2,000 men and roughly 250 women exiting prison with this challenging combination of experiences and circumstances.

In addition, almost one in five surveyed had convictions for offenses—including arson, sex offenses requiring placement on registries, methamphetamine manufacturing in public housing, or other drug crimes that had resulted in their eviction—that would potentially limit future housing options. And 13% reported disabilities or physical limitations that would necessitate living in accessible units.

Mental health challenges were very common in this group. More than a third of men and 53% of women said they had been diagnosed with an “an intellectual or developmental disability, Brain Injury, Bipolar Disorder, or similar diagnoses” at some point in the past. Even larger proportions—about two-thirds of men and 86% of women—reported having experienced anxiety, depression, trouble controlling anger, or other mental health challenges while incarcerated.

In addition to being more likely to report mental health challenges, women were more likely to have received treatment for them, and to be open to getting post-release mental health support services. This male-female difference in willingness to access post-prison support applied to other kinds of services as well, including substance abuse help.

Implications for Policy

Following the presentation of preliminary survey results at the Fall 2025 quarterly meeting of the IRC, an extended discussion of the survey’s implications for housing and reentry policy occurred among those present, who included elected officials, IDOC staff, housing and reentry experts and advocates, community representatives, and both formerly and currently incarcerated people (the latter observing the presentation via livestream).

Issues and questions the discussants raised included the following:

IDOC population context. In the search for effective (and affordable) policy responses to the housing needs of people coming out of prison, an important piece of context is that prison exit numbers have declined dramatically in Illinois. In 2015—just 10 years ago—more than 30,000 people were released from IDOC. In the most recent fiscal year, the number was 14,504, less than half that. One reason is the increased use of probation for offenses that once resulted in prison terms. That suggests at least that the problem of providing good housing for those coming out of prison should be getting more manageable.
Housing as prison diversion. Several discussants pointed out that, given what the Housing Assessment Survey reveals about the complicated and challenging housing histories of people in prison, providing access to safe and stable housing may be one good way to keep people out of prison in the first place.
Women’s need for housing independence. Before prison, women were much more likely than men to have been in shared living situations in which someone else was paying the rent or mortgage; they were also more likely to be contemplating similar arrangements after release. Because such housing may be inherently less permanent and secure, successful reentry for women require may efforts to promote increased housing independence.
Reentry for families. Substantial proportions of both men (37%) and women (39%) indicated they had children under the age of 18 who would be living with them following release from prison. One panelist, pointing to these figures, said they showed we need reentry housing for families, not just individuals. Another suggested that the array of “reentry services” should be expanded to include child care.

As Center Codirector Dave Olson pointed out at the conclusion of his presentation, this is just a first cut at the Housing Assessment Survey data. More analysis is needed, he said, to determine what the survey results can tell us about the experiences and needs of people with multiple issues—histories of housing instability plus minor children plus mental health or substance abuse challenges, say—who may need complex packages of services to succeed after release from prison. The Center will continue to work with the IRC and its partners to explore the survey data and to refine and improve future iterations of the survey.