Housing Counseling Program Work Plan - 3.17.20-HPN-HUD-Housing-Counseling-Work-Plan-Template

Aug 31, 2026

Housing Counseling Program Work Plan template guidance for drafting an agency’s plan for HUD-aligned counseling services. Covers program history and overall goals, selection of the target community with demographic and socioeconomic evidence, and the rationale for why services are needed. Provides instructions to include rural and Opportunity Zone considerations, cite sources such as HUD Consolidated Plan and Census data, and outline housing needs, barriers, and population-specific problems.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryForms

FormatDOCX

Pages12

Reading Time4 min

AccessFree to download

Housing Counseling Program Work Plan

Optional: History & Goals

Target Community

Housing Needs and Problems

[INSERT AGENCY LETTERHEAD] [AGENCY NAME] Housing Counseling Program Work Plan [DATE] OPTIONAL: History & Goals Provide a brief history of the organization/housing counseling program and the overall goals of your counseling program – e.g., build assets for low and moderate income households; stabilize neighborhoods through promotion of affordable homeownership; etc. TARGET COMMUNITY Essential elements include a complete and concise description of the target population (including statistics and references), why the agency selected this area as its target population, and why the agency’s services are needed if other HCAs also offer services in the area. In this section, you should list demographic information including age of housing stock, median income, poverty level, education, etc., in order to show who will be your targeted audience. Information can be obtained from the HUD Community Consolidated Plan, U.S. Census Bureau, community history, socioeconomic makeup, demographics, and employment trends. Be sure to identify in this section if you are serving rural areas, as defined by U.S. Department of Agriculture and Opportunity Zones. Guidance: The target audience is drawn from a variety of partnerships in the community, as well as referrals from previous program participants. Community partnerships are organizations that you have a working relationship with to accomplish your program goals. You may wish to do an attachment with a list of your community partners and contact information or add a link to your website for additional information. If you operate in a smaller region that only operates in a single state, for each county/city include the following type of information, citing the source and date of your data: County in 2019 had a population of with % of the population ages 18–64. The population of the area is % white, with % having at least a high school education. The median household income for the area in 2013 was $ yielding % of the population at or below poverty level. According to the County’s Comprehensive Plan, County in 2019 had housing units with % single-family detached and the balance of is multi-unit structures. The median age for housing stock are those built in 20 , yielding potential for increasing need for counseling related to rehabilitation, refinance, and post-purchase maintenance. The homeownership rate is %, yielding some new homeownership education needs as well as post-purchase counseling. The bankruptcy rate for the county has increased by % in the past 2 years, indicating a need for financial management and possibly credit repair counseling. The Consolidated Plan for County indicated a need for units of new single-family housing and rental units in the next years. This would point to a potential target audience for new homebuyer education as well as rental assistance and potential fair housing needs. Example: Our target population is the 5,000 residents of the City of Springfield. According to 2019 estimated Census data, tracks 201.11 through 220.12, this area’s characteristics include an average median income of $22,000 with a population comprising 25% Hispanic (including populations of Guatemalan and Cuban descent with English as a second language), 23% Caucasian (including 500 resettled refugees from Bosnia), and 10% Native American. Approximately 60% of the population are renters. According to the City of Springfield’s 5-year Consolidated Plan, approximately 45% of the housing in this area is substandard and the area has been targeted by the city for redevelopment. Our agency was chartered in 2000 specifically for improving the housing conditions of low-income families in the City of Springfield. Our target client group is the residents of the City of Springfield because of their income levels. Also, the city’s redevelopment efforts in the area include several affordable housing projects, providing a way for our clients to meet their housing needs without having to leave the City of Springf

FAQs

What should be included in the History & Goals section of a housing counseling work plan?

Include a brief organization/program history and clear overall counseling goals, such as building assets for low- and moderate-income households or stabilizing neighborhoods through affordable homeownership promotion.

How do you define the target community and target population?

Provide a complete, concise description of the target population with relevant statistics and references, explain why the agency selected this area, and justify why counseling services are needed there.

What information is required to describe housing needs and problems?

Identify specific housing problems of the target population, the barriers they face, and issues unique to that population base, supported with cited sources.

Aug 31, 2026

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