FHLBank Chicago Expands Community Advance for 2026 to Accelerate Affordable Housing and Economic Development

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 2, 2026--

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago (FHLBank Chicago) today announced the opening of its Community Advance product for 2026, reaffirming its commitment to affordable housing and local development. Backed by $55 million in annual interest rate subsidy, the program helps member institutions fund housing, support small businesses, and expand access to capital in communities that need it most.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260102461191/en/

Interest rate discounts of up to 200 basis points (bps), a $200,000 per-member interest rate subsidy cap (applied jointly for affiliated members under the same holding company owning two or more members), an improved online application experience, expanded eligibility, and no match funding or retention requirements remain as key benefits of the product. The Community Advance benefits have increased in 2026 for more member value, building on the successful launch of the streamlined offering.

What’s New in 2026

Extended Impact

"The expanded Community Advance reflects our commitment to making even more funding available to our members to drive community building activity in their communities," said Michael Ericson, President and CEO, FHLBank Chicago. "Increased funding and higher per-member limits will mean even more capital can be dedicated to housing and economic development across Illinois and Wisconsin."

The Community Advance offers tiered subsidized discounts based on financing type, including housing construction and rehabilitation loans, and funding for non-depository Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and nonprofit mortgage originators. Advances are available in both floating and fixed rate advances, with no match funding requirements.

Members who have used the product welcome faster approvals and expanded eligibility for housing, small business loans, and partnerships with CDFIs and nonprofit mortgage originators. All eligible small business loan originations qualify with no area median income limit. Expanded eligibility also includes mortgage-backed securities, mortgage revenue bonds and low-income housing tax credits.

“CoVantage Credit Union used the Community Advance to secure funding at a competitive discount, enabling the construction of three multifamily units in Illinois and 12 single family homes in Wisconsin,” said Mary Massey, Chief Financial Officer at CoVantage Credit Union. “The combination of the webinars, platform, and member support made the process clear and efficient, enabling us to obtain reduced borrowing costs without impacting our members' construction timelines.”

Complementing existing FHLBank Chicago products, including the Downpayment Plus ® (DPP ® ) Program and Housing Impact Pricing Grids within the Mortgage Partnership Finance ® (MPF ® ) Traditional Program, the Community Advance provides community-building benefits and drives value for members and their communities.

Get Started

Members can use the online subsidy calculator to estimate their available discount when applying. For more details, visit FHLBank Chicago’s Community Advance page.

This $55 million investment underscores FHLBank Chicago's ongoing commitment to innovative funding solutions that help member institutions bolster affordable housing supply and strengthen communities across our region.

About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago

FHLBank Chicago is a regional bank in the Federal Home Loan Bank System. FHLBanks are government-sponsored enterprises created by Congress to ensure access to low-cost funding for their member financial institutions, with a focus on providing solutions that support the housing and community development needs of members’ customers. FHLBank Chicago is a self-capitalizing cooperative, owned by its Illinois and Wisconsin members, including commercial banks, credit unions, insurance companies, savings institutions and community development financial institutions. To learn more about FHLBank Chicago, please visit fhlbc.com.

“Downpayment Plus,” “DPP,” “Mortgage Partnership Finance,” and “MPF,” are registered trademarks of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago.

FHLBank Chicago members use the Community Advance to support affordable housing and economic development in their communities. CoVantage Credit Union recently enabled the construction of three multifamily units in Illinois and 12 single family homes in Wisconsin through the product’s competitive discount.

ADEN, Yemen (AP) — Saudi warplanes have reportedly struck on Friday forces in southern Yemen backed by the United Arab Emirates, a separatist leader says.

This comes as a Saudi-led operation attempts to take over camps of the Southern Transitional Council, or STC, in the governorate of Haramout that borders Saudi Arabia.

Tensions between Saudi Arabia and the UAE rose after the STC moved last month into Yemen’s governorates of Hadramout and Mahra and seized an oil-rich region. The move pushed out forces affiliated with the Saudi-backed National Shield Forces, a group aligned with the coalition in fighting the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen.

Meanwhile, the Saudi ambassador to Yemen accused the head of the STC of blocking a Saudi mediation delegation from landing in the southern city of Aden.

The STC deputy and former Hamdrmout governor, Ahmed bin Breik, said in a statement that the Saudi-backed National Shield Forces advanced toward the camps, but the separatists refused to withdraw, apparently leading to the airstrikes.

Mohamed al-Nakib, spokesperson for the STC-backed Southern Shield Forces, also known as Dera Al-Janoub, said Saudi airstrikes caused fatalities, without providing details. The Associated Press couldn’t independently verify that claim.

Al-Nakib also accused Saudi Arabia in a video on X of using “Muslim Brotherhood and al-Qaeda militias” in a "large-scale attack " early Friday that he claimed sepratists were able to repel.

He likened the latest developments to Yemen’s 1994 civil war, “except that this time it is under the cover of Saudi aviation operations.”

Salem al-Khanbashi, the governor of Hadramout who was chosen Friday by Yemen's internationally recognized government to command the Saudi-led forces in the governorate, refuted STC claims, calling them “ridiculous” and showing intentions of escalation instead of a peaceful handover, according Okaz newspaper, which is aligned with the Saudi government.

Earlier on Friday, al-khanbashi called the current operation of retrieving seized areas “peaceful.”

“This operation is not a declaration of war and does not seek escalation,” al-Khanbashi said in a speech aired on state media. “This is a responsible pre-emptive measure to remove weapons and prevent chaos and the camps from being used to undermine the security in Hadramout,” he added.

The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen demands the withdrawal of STC forces from the two governorates as part of de-escalation efforts. The STC has so far refused to hand over its weapons and camps.

The coalition's spokesperson Brig. Gen. Turki al-Maliki said Friday on X that Saudi naval forces were deployed across the Arabian Sea to carry out inspections and combat smuggling.

In his post on X, the Saudi ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed al-Jaber, said the kingdom had tried “all efforts with STC” for weeks "to stop the escalation" and to urge the separatists to leave Hadramout and Mahra, only to be faced with “continued intransigence and rejection from Aidarous al-Zubaidi," the STC head.

Al-Jaber said the latest development was not permitting the Saudi delegation's jet to land in Aden, despite having agreed on its arrival with some STC leaders to find a solution that serves “everyone and the public interest.”

Yemen’s transport ministry, aligned with STC, said Saudi Arabia imposed on Thursday requirements mandating that flights to and from Aden International Airport undergo inspection in Jeddah. The ministry expressed “shock” and denounced the decision. There was no confirmation from Saudi authorities.

ِA spokesperson with the transport ministry told the AP late Thursday that all flights from and to the UAE were suspended until Saudi Arabia reverses these reported measures.

Yemen has been engulfed in a civil war for more than a decade, with the Houthis controlling much of the northern regions, while a Saudi-UAE-backed coalition supports the internationally recognized government in the south. However, the UAE also helps the southern separatists who call for South Yemen to secede once again from Yemen. Those aligned with the council have increasingly flown the flag of South Yemen, which was a separate country from 1967-1990.

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Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue in Beirut and Fatma Khaled in Cairo contributed to this report.

Southern Yemen soldiers of Southern Transitional Council (STC) at a check point, in Aden, Yemen, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo)