Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Jan 1978.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
59 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
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Who runs it and what they're paid
11 people listed on the 990; $115K paid to officers and key staff.
Cheryl Lawrence’s $130K as Former CEO is at the 59th percentile of top reported officer pay among 2036 $1–10M housing nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.
Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 2 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cheryl Lawrence | $130,000 | $129,999 | $130,333 | — |
| Mary Ellen Ball | — | — | — | $115,043 |
Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.
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Questions the 990 asks
The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.
- Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Programs and updates
Educates, advocates, and organizes for fair and inclusive suburban communities.
Questions for Open Communities
Your first name shows with your question. Open Communities answers here, for everyone.
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The organization provides fair housing support of residents in north suburban chicago. Services include housing counseling,resolution of landlord tenant disputes, foreclosure protection and enforcement of fair housing laws.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2020 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY20 | End FY20 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $6K | $160K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $197K | $258K |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $75K | $101K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $122K | $157K |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $484K | $313K | $171K | |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $22K | $32K | −$10K | |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $22K | $21K | $753 | |
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $58K | $21K | $37K | |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $50K | $11K | $39K | $703 |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $6K | $6K | ||
| OccupancyLn 16 | $51K | $29K | $23K | |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $27K | $8K | $19K | $209 |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $11K | $11K | ||
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $731K | $433K | $297K | $912 |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest | $1.2M | $1.4M | −$208K | $905K | 990 PDF |
| FY2024 | $1.1M | $1.3M | −$218K | $1.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $1.2M | $1.2M | $4K | $1.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $2.1M | $1.1M | $986K | $1.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $990K | $806K | $184K | $341K | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 Viewing | $766K | $731K | $35K | $157K | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2020 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $766,092 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 10 of 10 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $766,092 across 6 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $731,289 across 9 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $258,320 assets, 10 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $157,045 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2020 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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