HUD lists 1,355 housing counseling offices in the 50 states and D.C. as of October 23, 2026, plus 11 in Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Florida has the most (98), followed by New York (93), California and Illinois (81 each). Alaska and Wyoming have one listed office each. Per resident, the District of Columbia has the most, 24 offices per million people, and Kansas the fewest.
What housing counselors do
HUD-approved housing counseling agencies are mostly nonprofits and local government offices that HUD has checked and that must follow its standards. Counselors help people prepare to buy a home, avoid foreclosure, deal with rent problems, build a budget, and understand reverse mortgages. Most sessions are free or low cost. Of the offices listed, 1,252 offer pre-purchase counseling, 1,056 help homeowners who are behind or facing foreclosure, 973 offer budget and credit counseling and 877 counsel renters. Reverse mortgage (HECM) counseling, which federal rules require before taking out an FHA-insured reverse mortgage, is offered by 183.
Where you live matters less than the count suggests. 1,259 of the offices counsel by phone and many by video, so a homeowner in a state with few offices can still reach one elsewhere. Many first-time buyer and down payment assistance programs require a certificate from a HUD-approved counselor, so check what your program accepts before you book.
Counseling offices by state
| State | Listed offices | Per million residents | Foreclosure help | Budget and credit | Renters | Reverse mortgage | Spanish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 98 | 4.2 | 74 | 85 | 61 | 16 | 57 |
| New York | 93 | 4.7 | 79 | 53 | 54 | 13 | 38 |
| Illinois | 81 | 6.4 | 70 | 67 | 72 | 9 | 29 |
| California | 81 | 2.1 | 64 | 54 | 56 | 17 | 56 |
| Pennsylvania | 75 | 5.7 | 64 | 55 | 62 | 5 | 32 |
| Michigan | 59 | 5.8 | 46 | 38 | 41 | 4 | 17 |
| Ohio | 54 | 4.5 | 39 | 42 | 32 | 4 | 13 |
| North Carolina | 52 | 4.7 | 45 | 43 | 41 | 8 | 22 |
| Texas | 51 | 1.6 | 37 | 39 | 21 | 9 | 37 |
| Virginia | 48 | 5.4 | 37 | 28 | 42 | 6 | 10 |
| Georgia | 42 | 3.8 | 35 | 33 | 31 | 8 | 12 |
| Maryland | 41 | 6.5 | 34 | 30 | 21 | 6 | 18 |
| Massachusetts | 37 | 5.2 | 28 | 23 | 16 | 6 | 19 |
| Minnesota | 33 | 5.7 | 20 | 20 | 5 | 8 | 12 |
| New Jersey | 33 | 3.5 | 25 | 18 | 23 | 5 | 17 |
| Tennessee | 32 | 4.4 | 26 | 25 | 22 | 2 | 9 |
| Wisconsin | 26 | 4.4 | 17 | 17 | 13 | 4 | 13 |
| Colorado | 26 | 4.4 | 22 | 17 | 17 | 6 | 14 |
| Louisiana | 26 | 5.7 | 14 | 22 | 13 | 0 | 5 |
| Alabama | 25 | 4.8 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 1 | 8 |
| Oregon | 25 | 5.9 | 19 | 19 | 9 | 5 | 18 |
| Indiana | 21 | 3.0 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 1 | 7 |
| Arizona | 21 | 2.8 | 17 | 16 | 12 | 5 | 17 |
| Kentucky | 19 | 4.1 | 16 | 12 | 16 | 0 | 10 |
| Missouri | 18 | 2.9 | 14 | 11 | 10 | 3 | 4 |
| District of Columbia | 17 | 24.2 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 2 | 8 |
| Hawaii | 17 | 11.8 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 2 |
| Mississippi | 16 | 5.4 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 0 | 4 |
| Washington | 15 | 1.9 | 10 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| Arkansas | 14 | 4.5 | 13 | 13 | 6 | 2 | 8 |
| Connecticut | 13 | 3.5 | 12 | 8 | 10 | 1 | 9 |
| South Dakota | 13 | 14.1 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 1 | 8 |
| South Carolina | 13 | 2.4 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 3 | 4 |
| Delaware | 12 | 11.4 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 0 | 6 |
| Iowa | 11 | 3.4 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 4 |
| Montana | 11 | 9.7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 3 | 1 |
| Idaho | 10 | 5.0 | 8 | 3 | 9 | 4 | 6 |
| Nevada | 8 | 2.4 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 7 |
| Nebraska | 8 | 4.0 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 4 |
| West Virginia | 8 | 4.5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 3 |
| Utah | 7 | 2.0 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Vermont | 7 | 10.8 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| New Mexico | 7 | 3.3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| Maine | 7 | 5.0 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| Oklahoma | 6 | 1.5 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| New Hampshire | 5 | 3.5 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| Rhode Island | 5 | 4.5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| North Dakota | 3 | 3.8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Kansas | 3 | 1.0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| Wyoming | 1 | 1.7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Alaska | 1 | 1.4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
50 states and D.C. Counts are offices listed on HUD's housing counselor search, so an agency with several branches counts once per branch. Service columns show how many offices list each service. Rate per million residents is our calculation using Census 2024 ACS one-year population.
Funding and the pending lawsuit
Many of these agencies receive grants from HUD's Comprehensive Housing Counseling program, for which Congress appropriated $57.5 million. On September 29, 2026, ten nonprofit groups, including the National Urban League, sued federal officials and agencies in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (National Urban League v. Trump, No. 1:26-cv-03401). They challenge a September 25 proposal by the President and the Office of Management and Budget to rescind $56.1 million of that money, along with how HUD handled the grant competition. On September 30, the court issued an order suspending that day's deadline for HUD to obligate or award the $57.5 million until it rules on the groups' request for preliminary relief. The order kept the money available; it did not decide the case or require HUD to make any grant. The case was ongoing when we checked. Agencies on the list remain HUD-approved regardless of grant funding.
Source
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Housing Counseling Agency search data (data.hud.gov Housing_Counselor search by state), retrieved October 23, 2026. U.S. government data in the public domain. Court record: U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, No. 1:26-cv-03401, complaint filed September 29, 2026 and order filed September 30, 2026. Population: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 one-year estimates. Our tables are available under CC BY 4.0. Credit "My Credit Guide (mycreditguide.org)".
Steven Reynolds, "HUD-Approved Housing Counseling Agencies by State," My Credit Guide, October 23, 2026, https://mycreditguide.org/data/housing-counseling-agencies-by-state/.