Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Congressional research reportJan 13, 2025
Ask Donna
What actually matters in this document.
Text
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Updated January 13, 2025
Congressional Research Service
https://crsreports.congress.gov
R47628
SUMMARY
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Housing affordability is a perennial policy issue, but it has become particularly salient in recent
years in light of notable increases in house prices and rents, rising mortgage interest rates, and
housing supply constraints in many housing markets. Although housing markets are local in
nature, and housing market conditions vary across the country, concerns about housing
affordability have been widespread.
R47628
January 13, 2025
Katie Jones, Coordinator
Analyst in Housing Policy
Through hearings and proposed legislation, the 118th Congress considered the causes of, and
potential solutions to, housing affordability issues. Bills introduced to address housing affordability included certain housingrelated tax proposals and proposed modifications to existing housing assistance programs, among other things. In addition to
considering housing affordability issues broadly, the 118th Congress also took an interest in the affordability of housing for
specific populations or in specific areas. For example, there were proposals in the 118th Congress specifically related to rural
housing programs and Native American housing programs, and Congress has expressed ongoing concerns about housing
issues on and around military bases.
In addition to considering new legislative proposals, the 118th Congress took an ongoing interest in the status or
implementation of funding that was provided for certain housing-related programs in previous Congresses. This included
emergency supplemental funding provided for housing programs in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, certain housingrelated funding that was included in the Inflation Reduction Act in the 117 th Congress, and funding for new initiatives
provided through regular annual appropriations, such as a new competitive grant program for communities addressing
regulatory barriers to housing.
Other issues that have been of ongoing interest to Congress include concerns related to the quality of the housing stock in
general, and federally-assisted housing in particular; disaster response and recovery as it relates to housing; and fair housing
issues, among others. In addition, the 118th Congress conducted oversight or considered legislation related to certain agency
actions, such as certain mortgage pricing changes implemented by the government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and
Freddie Mac at the direction of their regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, and the Department of Energy’s
implementation of congressionally mandated energy standards for manufactured housing.
Congressional Research Service
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1
Housing Market Conditions ............................................................................................................ 1
Housing Costs ........................................................................................................................... 2
Sales Prices for Single-Family Homes................................................................................ 2
Mortgage Interest Rates ...................................................................................................... 3
Asking Rents ....................................................................................................................... 4
Housing Affordability Challenges ...................................................................................... 5
Housing Supply ......................................................................................................................... 7
Inventory of Single-Family Homes for Sale ....................................................................... 7
Rental Vacancy Rates .......................................................................................................... 8
Housing Construction ......................................................................................................... 8
Housing and the Broader Economy ........................................................................................ 12
Selected Current Issues.................................................................................................................. 13
Housing Affordability ............................................................................................................. 14
Housing Supply ....................................................................................................................... 14
Appropriations for Housing Programs .................................................................................... 15
Housing Tax Proposals ............................................................................................................ 16
Competitive Grants for Land Use and Zoning Reform (HUD PRO Housing) ....................... 17
Rural Housing Programs ......................................................................................................... 19
Rural Housing and the Farm Bill ...................................................................................... 19
Rural Housing Program Reform Proposals....................................................................... 20
Native American Housing ....................................................................................................... 20
NAHASDA Reauthorization Efforts ................................................................................. 21
Other Bills Related to Native American Housing ............................................................. 21
Status of COVID-19 Supplemental Funding for Housing ...................................................... 22
Treasury Programs ............................................................................................................ 22
HUD Programs ................................................................................................................. 23
Homelessness .......................................................................................................................... 24
Housing Quality ...................................................................................................................... 26
Implementation of Housing-Related Provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act ..................... 27
HUD Green and Resilient Retrofit Program ..................................................................... 27
DOE Home Energy Rebate Programs ............................................................................... 28
EPA Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund.............................................................................. 29
Additional IRA Housing-Related Provisions .................................................................... 30
Fair Housing ............................................................................................................................ 30
Disparate Impact Discrimination ...................................................................................... 32
Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing ............................................................................. 34
Military Housing ..................................................................................................................... 35
Basic Allowance for Housing ........................................................................................... 36
Housing Shortages ............................................................................................................ 37
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Loan Level Price Adjustments ................................................ 38
Energy Standards for Manufactured Housing ......................................................................... 40
Housing and Disaster Response and Recovery ....................................................................... 42
FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program (IHP) and HUD’s Community
Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) ......................................... 42
Interaction Between FEMA’s IHP and HUD’s CDBG-DR ............................................... 44
FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)......................................................... 47
Congressional Research Service
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Housing and Climate Impacts ........................................................................................... 49
Housing and Insurance ............................................................................................................ 51
Figures
Figure 1. Real (Inflation-Adjusted) Median Sale Prices for New and Existing
Single-Family Homes ................................................................................................................... 3
Figure 2. Mortgage Interest Rates ................................................................................................... 4
Figure 3. Real (Inflation-Adjusted) Median Asking Rent ............................................................... 5
Figure 4. Housing Cost Burdens by Tenure and Household Income............................................... 6
Figure 5. Homes for Sale, New and Existing .................................................................................. 7
Figure 6. Rental Vacancy Rates ....................................................................................................... 8
Figure 7. Housing Units Started .................................................................................................... 10
Figure 8. Housing Units Completed .............................................................................................. 10
Figure 9. Housing Units under Construction .................................................................................. 11
Figure 10. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Shelter in U.S. City Average ......... 13
Tables
Table A-1. Housing Bills in the 118th Congress that Received Committee or Floor Action ......... 54
Table B-1. Housing-Related Hearings in the 118th Congress ........................................................ 57
Appendixes
Appendix A. Housing Bills in the 118th Congress ......................................................................... 54
Appendix B. Housing Hearings in the 118th Congress .................................................................. 57
Contacts
Author Information........................................................................................................................ 60
Congressional Research Service
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Introduction
While housing in the United States is primarily a private market enterprise, regulated at the state
and local levels, federal policymakers play an important role in regulating housing finance,
providing affordable housing resources to state and local governments or other public or private
entities, and enforcing fair housing laws, among other functions. Congress establishes laws
governing U.S. housing policy, funds housing policies and programs via the annual
appropriations process and the federal tax code, and oversees policy and program implementation
by various federal agencies. The House Financial Services Committee and the Senate Banking,
Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, in particular, play prominent roles in many of these
functions as committees of jurisdiction over most federal housing policy and programs. Federal
agencies involved in housing policy and programs include the Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD), the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the Department of the
Treasury (Treasury), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and others.
The 118th Congress considered a range of housing policy issues, including options to address
growing concern about housing supply and affordability challenges, housing responses to natural
disasters, and Native American housing programs and policy. Other issues of interest to the 118th
Congress included the status or implementation of certain housing-related funding provided in
previous Congresses and oversight of executive branch actions related to housing.
This report begins with an overview of certain housing market indicators during the 118th
Congress to provide context for the policy issues discussed in the remainder of the report. It then
provides a high-level overview of housing issues during the 118th Congress and, where
applicable, refers to more in-depth CRS reports on the issues discussed. Appendix A lists
housing-related legislation that received committee or floor consideration in the 118th Congress
and Appendix B lists housing-related hearings held during the 118th Congress.
Housing Market Conditions
There are about 131 million occupied housing units in the United States, of which 85.7 million
(65%) are owner-occupied and 45.6 million (35%) are renter-occupied.1 Of the total number of
occupied housing units,
•
•
•
•
90 million (69%) are one-unit properties,2
25 million (19%) are units in buildings with five or more units,
10 million (7%) are units in two-to-four-unit properties, and
7 million (5%) are manufactured or mobile homes or another type of housing.
While most homeowners (nearly 90%) live in one-unit properties,3 the types of housing renters
live in are more varied: about 31% of renters live in one-unit properties, another 17% live in units
1 Statistics in this section are from U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 One-Year Estimates, Table
S2504, https://data.census.gov/table/ACSST1Y2023.S2504?q=s%202504.
2 This includes both detached one-unit properties (properties with space on all sides) and attached one-unit properties
(e.g., rowhouses/townhouses). For specific definitions of attached and detached units used in the American Community
Survey, see U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey and Puerto Rico Community Survey, 2023 Subject
Definitions, p. 45, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/tech_docs/subject_definitions/
2023_ACSSubjectDefinitions.pdf.
3 Another 6% of homeowners live in manufactured or mobile homes, 2% live in units in two-to-four-unit properties,
and about 3.5% live in units in properties with five or more units.
Congressional Research Service
1
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
in properties with 2-4 units, and about 48% live in units in properties with five or more units.
Another 4% of renters live in manufactured or mobile homes.
House prices and rents have both increased significantly in recent years. While house price and
rent increases have more recently shown signs of moderating, concerns about housing
affordability remain high. Local housing markets vary, but many markets have seen housing cost
increases driven in part by a lack of available housing supply. Rising mortgage interest rates have
also contributed to affordability challenges.
This first section of the report provides background on housing market conditions to provide
context for the housing policy issues discussed in the remainder of the report; in most cases, the
data presented reflect conditions through 2023, the first year of the 118th Congress. It focuses on
selected indicators related to housing costs and supply. While the discussion of market conditions
presented in this section is at the national level, local housing market conditions can vary
significantly, and national housing market trends may not reflect the conditions in a specific area.
Nevertheless, national housing market indicators can provide an overall sense of general trends in
housing in the United States.
Housing Costs
This subsection provides selected indicators related to housing costs, including home sale prices,
rents, and housing cost burdens.
Sales Prices for Single-Family Homes
Single-family homes may be purchased by owner-occupants, individuals or families seeking
second homes or vacation properties, or investors of different types, including both individual and
corporate investors of various sizes who may purchase homes to hold for renting or to sell at a
later date.
Figure 1 shows the trend in real (i.e., inflation-adjusted) median sales prices for both new and
existing homes since 1995 in 2023 dollars. While the median sales price of new homes has been
consistently above that of existing homes, prices for both new and existing homes have generally
trended upward over the past two decades, with the exception of a decline in prices during and
after the 2007-2009 financial crisis.
Real median sales prices for both new and existing homes have mostly increased since 2012, and
price increases accelerated beginning in 2020 before beginning to flatten or reverse around 20222023. In 2023, the median sales price for an existing home was $389,300, and the median sales
price for a new home was $428,600, both somewhat lower than the real median sales price in
2022 but increases of 12% and 20%, respectively, since 2019. Although median home prices
decreased in real terms in 2023 (and new home prices decreased in nominal terms as well), they
have generally increased in recent years. The combination of higher house prices and higher
interest rates, discussed further in the following section, continues to pose affordability challenges
for many homebuyers.
Congressional Research Service
2
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Figure 1. Real (Inflation-Adjusted) Median Sale Prices for New and Existing
Single-Family Homes
1995-2023
Sources: CRS calculations based on data from HUD’s U.S. Housing Market Conditions reports, available
at https://www.huduser.gov/portal/ushmc/home.html (which use data from the National Association of Realtors
for existing home prices, and the U.S. Census Bureau for new home prices), and data from the Bureau of Labor
Statistics for the consumer price index. Figures are in 2023 dollars.
Notes: Gray bars indicate recessions. Figures are adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Price Index for all
Urban Consumers (CPI-U) with 2023 as the base year.
Mortgage Interest Rates
Many homebuyers take out a mortgage to purchase a home, especially when purchasing a
primary residence.4 The ability of prospective homebuyers to obtain mortgages, as well as the
costs of those mortgages, impacts housing demand and affordability.
After several years of historical lows, mortgage interest rates rose notably in 2022, due in part to
contractionary monetary policy.5 As shown in Figure 2, mortgage interest rates had been
consistently below 5% for about 12 years beginning in May 2010. Lower interest rates increase
mortgage affordability and make it easier for some households to purchase homes or refinance
their existing mortgages.
Mortgage interest rates began to increase in early 2022 and rose rapidly through much of 2022
and 2023. The rates averaged 3.45% in January 2022 and increased to 6.90% by October 2022
before falling somewhat. Rates began to increase again after the first few months of 2023 and
4 According to the National Association of Realtors, about 74% of homebuyers who purchased a primary residence
between July 2023 and June 2024 financed the purchase. This figure was 91% for first-time homebuyers. See National
Association of Realtors, Highlights from the 2024 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, November 2024,
https://www.nar.realtor/sites/default/files/2024-11/2024-profile-of-home-buyers-and-sellers-highlights-11-042024_2.pdf.
5 When the Federal Reserve raises the target range for the federal funds interest rate, other interest rates in the
economy, including mortgage interest rates, tend to increase as well. However, mortgage interest rates are not
determined solely by monetary policy and are affected by other factors within the housing market. For more
information on monetary policy, see CRS In Focus IF11751, Introduction to U.S. Economy: Monetary Policy.
Congressional Research Service
3
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
reached an average of 7.62% during October 2023, the highest level since November 2000.
During 2024, mortgage interest rates largely remained below 7%, and averaged 6.72% in
December 2024.
Figure 2. Mortgage Interest Rates
January 1995-December 2024
Source: Created by CRS based on data from Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS), 30Year Fixed Rate Historic Tables, available at http://www.freddiemac.com/pmms/.
Notes: Gray bars indicate recessions. Data reflect average interest rates for conventional (i.e., not governmentinsured) conforming (i.e., conform to Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac standards, including loan limits) home purchase
mortgages to borrowers with good credit and a 20% down payment. The actual interest rate paid by any given
borrower will depend on a number of factors. In November 2022, Freddie Mac adjusted its methodology for the
PMMS by replacing traditional survey methods with administrative datasets. Freddie Mac estimates that these
changes would have only had a small impact on historical PMMS results. For more information, see
https://www.freddiemac.com/research/insight/20221103-freddie-macs-newly-enhanced-mortgage-rate-survey.
Asking Rents
Figure 3 shows the trend in the average annual real median asking rent for vacant units in 2023
dollars. Asking rents are an indicator of potential costs for renters seeking to newly lease a rental
unit, but do not include rents paid by current tenants or potential rent increases for currently
occupied units.
Like home prices, asking rents have been increasing in general over the past decade, and
increased about 7% between 2022 and 2023.
Congressional Research Service
4
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Figure 3. Real (Inflation-Adjusted) Median Asking Rent
1995-2023
Sources: Created by CRS using data from U.S. Census Bureau, Housing Vacancies and Homeownership
Historical Tables, Table 11A, available at https://www.census.gov/housing/hvs/data/histtabs.html, and data from
the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the consumer price index.
Notes: Gray bars indicate recessions. Figures are adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Price Index for all
Urban Consumers (CPI-U) with 2023 as the base year.
Housing Affordability Challenges
Under widely used measures of affordability, households are generally considered cost-burdened
if they pay more than 30% of their income for housing, and severely cost-burdened if they pay
more than 50% of their income for housing.6 Rising housing costs can contribute to housing cost
burdens if these costs increase faster than household incomes.
The number and share of cost-burdened households have been increasing in recent years. In 2023,
22.6 million renter households, or nearly half of all renter households (49.5%), experienced cost
burdens, an increase from 20.4 million cost-burdened renter households (46% of all renter
households) in 2019. The number and share of cost-burdened homeowners also increased, to 20.3
million (23.6% of owner households) in 2023 compared to 16.7 million owner households (21%)
in 2019.7
Figure 4 shows the shares of households with moderate or severe cost burdens by tenure (that is,
whether the household owns or rents their home) and household income. While housing cost
burdens can affect both renters and homeowners and households of differing income levels, they
are most prevalent among lower-income renter households.
6 Although these measures of housing affordability and cost burden are widely used, they also have recognized
shortcomings. For discussions of some of the limitations of these definitions, see HUD Office of Policy Development
and Research (PD&R), “Rental Burdens: Rethinking Affordability Measures,” PD&R Edge online magazine,
https://www.huduser.gov/portal/pdredge/pdr_edge_featd_article_092214.html; and HUD PD&R, “Defining Housing
Affordability,” PD&R Edge online magazine, https://www.huduser.gov/portal/pdredge/pdr-edge-featd-article081417.html.
7 CRS calculations using the 2019 and 2023 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates Public Use Microdata
Sample available at https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets/census-microdata-api.html.
Congressional Research Service
5
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Figure 4. Housing Cost Burdens by Tenure and Household Income
2023
Source: Figure created by CRS based on CRS calculations using the 2023 American Community Survey 1-Year
Estimates Public Use Microdata Sample, available at https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets/censusmicrodata-api.html.
In light of the greater prevalence of affordability challenges among lower-income renter
households, Congress has directed HUD to regularly report on the number of very low-income
renters with worst case housing needs, which HUD does in biennial reports.8 Households are
considered to have worst case housing needs if (1) they are very low-income renter households
(that is, households with incomes at or below 50% of area median income); (2) who do not
receive government housing assistance; and (3) pay more than half their income toward rent, live
in severely inadequate housing, or both.
The 2023 report, which provides data from 2021, shows that in 2021 the number of renter
households with worst case housing needs reached its highest level since HUD began reporting
on it in the early 1990s. The report found that 8.53 million households experienced worst case
housing needs in 2021, an increase from 7.77 million in 2019 and more than the previous high of
8.48 million households in 2011.9 The share of very low-income renter households with worst
case housing needs also reached a record high of 44.1%, surpassing the previous high of 44.0% in
2011, as the number of households with worst case needs grew faster than the number of very
low-income renter households as a whole.10 Most households with worst case housing needs have
severe cost burdens rather than physically inadequate housing.11
8 HUD’s Worst Case Housing Needs reports are available on HUD’s website at https://www.huduser.gov/portal/
AFWCN.html. As referenced in the HUD reports, language in S.Rept. 101-474, which accompanied the FY1991 HUD
appropriation bill, directs HUD to report on worst case housing needs. See, for example, U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Development, Priority Housing Problems and “Worst Case” Needs in 1989, A Report to Congress, June
1991, p. 1, https://www.huduser.gov/portal//Publications/pdf/HUD-5828_WorstCase1989_report.pdf.
9 U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Worst Case Housing Needs, 2023 Report to Congress, May
2023, https://www.huduser.gov/portal//portal/sites/default/files/pdf/Worst-Case-Housing-Needs-2023.pdf.
10 Ibid., p. viii.
11 Ibid., p. ix.
Congressional Research Service
6
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Housing Supply
Housing costs are influenced, in part, by the supply of homes available for sale or rent. This
subsection provides selected indicators on the available housing supply, including the number of
homes for sale, rental vacancy rates, and single-family and multifamily housing construction
activity.
Inventory of Single-Family Homes for Sale
One indicator of housing supply is the number of homes for sale at a given point in time. Lower
inventories of homes for sale can put upward pressure on house prices if demand is strong.
As shown in Figure 5, the number of single-family homes for sale has been relatively low in
recent years. As of the end of 2023, there were about 1.4 million homes for sale (nearly 1 million
existing homes and close to 500,000 new homes). This represented an increase over the three
previous years, but was still low by historical standards. The number of new homes for sale was
slightly below the 2022 figure, which had been the highest since 2007.
Figure 5. Homes for Sale, New and Existing
1995-2023
Sources: Created by CRS using data from HUD’s U.S. Housing Market Conditions reports, available
at https://www.huduser.gov/portal/ushmc/home.html, which use data from the National Association of Realtors
for existing home inventories and from the U.S. Census Bureau for new home inventories.
Notes: Annual inventory represents homes for sale as of the end of the year.
The supply of homes for sale affects the number of homes sold. Sales of existing homes generally
number in the millions each year, while new home sales are usually in the hundreds of thousands.
In 2023, there were nearly 4.8 million home sales (about 4.1 million existing homes and nearly
670,000 new homes).12 This was the lowest level of combined home sales since 2011, when a
12 See HUD’s U.S. Housing Market Conditions reports, available at https://www.huduser.gov/portal/ushmc/home.html,
which use data from the National Association of Realtors for existing home sales and from the U.S. Census Bureau for
new home sales.
Congressional Research Service
7
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
total of 4.6 million homes were sold. Lower home sales may reflect a variety of factors, including
low housing inventory and higher mortgage interest rates.
Rental Vacancy Rates
The rental vacancy rate is the share of rental units that are currently vacant for rent.13 Low
vacancy rates may put upward pressure on rents as renters compete for fewer available units.
As shown in Figure 6, the rental vacancy rate has generally been declining in recent years and
was 5.8% in 2022, the lowest rental vacancy rate in several decades.14 However, the rental
vacancy rate increased to 6.5% in 2023, the highest level since 2019, when it was 6.7%.
Figure 6. Rental Vacancy Rates
1995-2023
Source: Figure created by CRS based on data from U.S. Census Bureau, Housing Vacancies and
Homeownership Annual Tables, Table 1, “Rental and Homeowner Vacancy Rates by
Area,” https://www.census.gov/housing/hvs/data/prevann.html.
Notes: Gray bars indicate recessions. Because data collection procedures were affected by the COVID-19
pandemic during some quarters in 2020 and 2021, the Census Bureau urges caution in interpreting estimates
from affected timeframes and in comparing those estimates to previous or subsequent estimates.
Housing Construction
While specific estimates vary, research suggests that the United States has a shortage of housing
units needed to meet housing demand, due in part to years of underbuilding and declining
construction of smaller, less expensive homes in particular.15 These estimates suggest that new
13 U.S. Census Bureau, Housing Vacancies and Homeownership, “Definitions and Explanations,” p. 6,
https://www.census.gov/housing/hvs/definitions.pdf.
14 Annual rental vacancy rate data are from U.S. Census Bureau, Housing Vacancies and Homeownership, Annual
Statistics, Table 1, “Rental and Homeowner Vacancy Rates by Area,” available at https://www.census.gov/housing/
hvs/data/prevann.html. The rental vacancy rate of 5.8% in 2022 was the lowest since 1983, when the rental vacancy
rate was 5.7%.
15 For example, Freddie Mac estimated a housing supply shortage of 3.8 million units at the end of 2020. See Sam
Khater, One of the Most Important Challenges our Industry will Face: The Significant Shortage of Starter Homes,
(continued...)
Congressional Research Service
8
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
construction is needed to help meet demand. A variety of statistics measure the amount of new
housing construction underway, including housing permits, housing starts, and housing
completions. Measures such as housing starts are often considered leading economic indicators
that provide signals about the health of the economy.
Figure 7 and Figure 8 show annual housing starts16 and housing completions,17 respectively.
Starts and completions data are reported for three types of housing units: one-unit properties,
units in two-to-four-unit properties, and units in properties with five or more units. The numbers
of one-unit starts and completions are typically much higher than starts and completions of units
in multi-unit properties, and the trends in starts and completions generally track each other fairly
closely. In 2023,
•
•
construction was started on about 1.4 million housing units, of which about
945,000 were one-unit homes, 456,000 were in buildings with five or more units,
and 13,000 were in buildings with two-to-four units; and
about 1.5 million new housing units were completed, of which about 1 million
were one-unit homes, 439,000 were in buildings with five or more units, and
11,500 were in buildings with two-to-four units.
After a precipitous drop starting in the mid-2000s, both housing starts and housing completions
have generally risen since about 2011, although starts of both single-family and multifamily
homes fell in 2023 compared to 2022. Completions of single-family homes have mostly
continued to increase, although in 2023 they decreased to 1 million units compared to 1.02
million units in 2022. Completions of units in multifamily properties have generally been
relatively flat in recent years, but increased to nearly 439,000 units in 2023 compared to 359,000
units in 2022. Starts and completions of one-unit properties have not returned to the levels seen
prior to the 2007-2009 financial crisis, while starts and completions of units in properties with
five or more units are higher than they were prior to the financial crisis.
April 15, 2021, https://www.freddiemac.com/perspectives/sam-khater/20210415-single-family-shortage. For an
overview of different estimates, see David Wessel, Where do the estimates of a “housing shortage” come from?,
Brookings, October 21, 2024, https://www.brookings.edu/articles/where-do-the-estimates-of-a-housing-shortage-comefrom/.
16 Census defines starts as occurring “when excavation begins for the footings or foundation of a building. All housing
units in a multifamily building are defined as being started when this excavation begins. Beginning with data for
September 1992, estimates of housing starts include units in structures being totally rebuilt on an existing foundation.”
See U.S. Census Bureau, “Survey of Construction Definitions,” https://www.census.gov/construction/soc/
definitions.html.
17 According to the Census definition, “A house is defined as completed when all finished flooring has been installed
(or carpeting if used in place of finished flooring). If the building is occupied before all construction is finished, it is
classified as completed at the time of occupancy. In privately-owned buildings with two or more housing units, all of
the units in the buildings are counted as completed when 50 percent or more of the units are occupied or available for
occupancy.” See U.S. Census Bureau, “Survey of Construction Definitions.”
Congressional Research Service
9
Figure 7. Housing Units Started
Figure 8. Housing Units Completed
1995-2023
1995-2023
Source: Created by CRS using data from U.S. Census Bureau, New Residential
Construction, Historical Data, available at https://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/
historical_data/index.html.
Source: Created by CRS using data from U.S. Census Bureau, New Residential
Construction, Historical Data, available at https://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/
historical_data/index.html.
CRS-10
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Figure 9 shows the number of housing units under construction at the end of each year (i.e.,
started but not yet completed). There were about 1.7 million housing units under construction at
the end of 2023, of which about 658,000 were one-unit homes, about 17,000 were units in two-tofour-unit properties, and nearly 979,000 were units in properties with five or more units.
Unlike starts and completions, where single-family units consistently outnumber multifamily
units, the number of multifamily units currently under construction has been higher than the
number of single-family units under construction for much of the past decade. In general, it takes
longer to construct multifamily units than single-family units,18 accounting for part of the reason
that the number of multifamily units under construction is generally higher compared to singlefamily units than starts or completions data would suggest. Factors such as labor and material
shortages that have contributed to construction delays for both single-family and multifamily
properties have further impacted construction timelines.19 Also, as noted above, new multifamily
housing starts have exceeded their levels from prior to the 2007-2009 financial crisis in recent
years, while single-family starts are below their levels from the late 1990s and early 2000s. As
units under construction translate into completions, supply is expected to increase in the short
term.
Figure 9. Housing Units under Construction
1995-2023
Source: Created by CRS using data from U.S. Census Bureau, New Residential Construction, Historical Data,
available at https://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/historical_data/index.html.
Another metric to consider is spending on residential construction, as measured by residential
fixed investment (described in greater detail in the following section). Residential fixed
18 U.S. Census Bureau, “Annual Length of Time from Start to Completion of Buildings Started in Permit-Issuing
Places,” 1971-2022, https://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/pdf/avg_starttocomp.pdf.
19 See, for example, National Multifamily Housing Council, “Multifamily Units Under Construction are Up, But
Demand for Apartments Remains,” August 11, 2022, https://www.nmhc.org/news/nmhc-news/2022/multifamily-unitsunder-construction-are-up-but-demand-for-apartments-remains/; and National Association of Home Builders, “Supply
Chain Issues Continue to Slow Housing,” February 17, 2022, https://www.nahb.org/blog/2022/02/supply-chain-issuescontinue-to-slow-housing/.
Congressional Research Service
11
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
investment has fallen in both real and nominal terms since the second quarter of 2022, which
could be a contributing factor in the recent decrease in housing starts.20
Housing and the Broader Economy
The housing market plays an important role in the larger economy, as it accounts for a significant
portion of economic activity. Housing contributes to GDP in two direct ways: residential fixed
investment and spending on housing services. Residential fixed investment includes all spending
on the construction of new single- and multi-family structures, residential remodeling, and
brokers’ fees. Housing services includes all spending on renters’ utilities and rent and
homeowners’ imputed rent21 and utility payments. In real (inflation-adjusted) terms, residential
fixed investment decreased in 2022 and 2023 and the second and third quarters of 2024.22 Such
slowdowns in residential fixed investment have been followed by periods of economic slowdown
in the past, although the causal connection between the two is not certain.23 On the other hand,
real spending on housing services has been more robust than real residential fixed investment—
while variable from quarter to quarter, real spending on housing and utilities services rose by
2.8% and 0.5% in 2022 and 2023, respectively.24 (For further discussion of housing and economic
growth, see CRS In Focus IF11327, Introduction to U.S. Economy: Housing Market.)
One of the ways in which housing has most notably affected the economy recently is in its
contribution to inflation. As shown in Figure 10, shelter inflation accelerated notably in 2021 and
2022, and continued to increase in the first quarter of 2023 when many other expenditure inflation
categories decelerated. After peaking in March 2023, shelter inflation has come down but remains
elevated, most recently at 4.8% in November 2023, compared to overall inflation of 2.7% in the
same month. Shelter inflation, which includes both rental and owner-occupied housing, is a
measure of the changes in cost to rent a home (or what it would cost to rent an owner-occupied
unit).25 Shelter inflation is not a measure of new leases, but rather all leases, so new higher rents
can take several months to filter into the calculation of shelter inflation.
20 Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), National Income and Product Accounts (NIPA), Table 1.1.1, “Percent Change
From Preceding Period in Real Gross Domestic Product” and Table 1.1.5, “Gross Domestic Product,”
https://apps.bea.gov/iTable/?reqid=19&step=2&isuri=1&categories=survey.
21 Imputed rent is the estimate of the rent a homeowner would be willing to pay to live in their own house.
22
BEA, NIPA, Table 1.1.1, Percent Change From Preceding Period in Real Gross Domestic Product,
https://apps.bea.gov/iTable/?reqid=19&step=2&isuri=1&categories=
survey#eyJhcHBpZCI6MTksInN0ZXBzIjpbMSwyLDNdLCJkYXRhIjpbWyJjYXRlZ29yaWVzIiwiU3VydmV5Il0sW
yJOSVBBX1RhYmxlX0xpc3QiLCIxIl1dfQ==.
23 For more information, see CRS Report R47479, Common Causes of Economic Recession.
24 BEA, NIPA, Table 2.3.1, Percent change From Preceding Period in Real Personal Consumption Expenditures by
Major Type of Product, https://apps.bea.gov/iTable/?reqid=19&step=2&isuri=1&categories=
survey#eyJhcHBpZCI6MTksInN0ZXBzIjpbMSwyLDMsM10sImRhdGEiOltbImNhdGVnb3JpZXMiLCJTdXJ2ZXki
XSxbIk5JUEFfVGFibGVfTGlzdCIsIjYxIl0sWyJGaXJzdF9ZZWFyIiwiMjAyMCJdLFsiTGFzdF9ZZWFyIiwiMjAyN
CJdLFsiU2NhbGUiLCIwIl0sWyJTZXJpZXMiLCJBIl1dfQ==.
25 For details on how imputed rent is calculated, see CRS In Focus IF12164, Housing and the Consumer Price Index.
Congressional Research Service
12
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Figure 10. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers:
Shelter in U.S. City Average
January 1995-November 2024
Source: Created by CRS based on data from Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index, at
https://www.bls.gov/cpi/data.htm.
Notes: Gray bars indicate recessions.
On average, spending on shelter is a large component of total expenditures for consumers.
Increasing shelter costs, therefore, can add significant burden to households and potentially result
in altered spending patterns, the need to change housing, or difficulties making ends meet,
depending on the real incomes of each household in question. Additionally, the shelter component
of inflation is weighted heavily to account for its large share of average expenditures.26 As such,
shelter inflation is watched closely by the Federal Reserve and other policymakers and can
influence policy decisions, notably with respect to monetary policy. Changes to monetary policy
can affect economic growth and employment, among other aspects of the economy. (For more
information on monetary policy and its effects on the economy, see CRS In Focus IF11751,
Introduction to U.S. Economy: Monetary Policy.)
Selected Current Issues
The remainder of this report provides a high-level overview of selected housing issues of the
118th Congress.
26 Shelter generally has a relative importance in the Consumer Price Index of roughly 30%-35%. For example, in
February 2023, the shelter expenditure category had a weight of 34.473. For the most recent relative importance
weights, see BLS, Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: U.S. city average, by expenditure
category, https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.t01.htm.
Congressional Research Service
13
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Housing Affordability
While housing affordability is a perennial policy issue for Congress, in recent years the price
increases and supply constraints described above in the “Housing Market Conditions” section
have exacerbated housing affordability concerns. Affordability challenges can affect both owners
and renters at varying levels of income; however, lower-income renter households are the most
likely to face the highest housing cost-to-income ratios, placing them at the greatest risk for
housing insecurity.27
In general, much of federal housing policy is focused on demand-side subsidies, which are
intended to make existing housing more affordable for individuals and families. More than threequarters of HUD’s budget, for example, goes to rent subsidies for low-income households.
However, funding for rental assistance is not sufficient to serve everyone who could qualify;
estimates vary, but they generally show that the primary federal rental assistance programs reach
roughly one in four eligible households.28 During the 118th Congress, demand-side proposals to
address housing costs included expanding rental assistance programs to serve more families,29
creating new sources of down payment assistance funding for prospective homebuyers,30 or
establishing renter or homebuyer tax credits to help offset housing costs for qualifying
households.31
While demand-side assistance can help make housing more affordable for those households who
receive it, there are concerns it could contribute to further rent or home price increases in areas
where supply is limited. Historically, housing supply has predominantly been driven by
investment and development decisions of private market actors, subject to market conditions and
state and local land-use and building regulation. However, there has been growing interest in
identifying ways the federal government can help increase the supply of housing generally, and
affordable housing particularly.
Housing Supply
Given widespread concerns that housing supply constraints are contributing to higher housing
costs, both Congress and the Biden Administration took actions or put forward proposals aimed at
increasing supply. These included proposals for additional funding for new or existing programs
that support the development or maintenance of affordable housing, changes to program rules to
better facilitate the use of existing resources to expand housing supply, and actions to encourage
communities to address local regulatory barriers that may affect the supply or affordability of
housing. An example of the latter approach in the 117th Congress was funding in the Consolidated
27 Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, State of the Nation’s Housing 2023, pp. 36-38,
https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/reports/files/
Harvard_JCHS_The_State_of_the_Nations_Housing_2023.pdf.
28 HUD, Worst Case Housing Needs 2023 Report to Congress, p. xi, https://www.huduser.gov/portal//portal/sites/
default/files/pdf/Worst-Case-Housing-Needs-2023.pdf.
29 For example, see the Ending Homelessness for All Act (H.R. 4232) and HUD’s FY2024 Congressional Budget
Justifications, which proposed mandatory funding for new vouchers, at https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/CFO/
documents/2024_Mandatory_Affordable_Housing_Programs.pdf.
30 For example, see the Down Payment Toward Equity Act (H.R. 4231) and HUD’s FY2024 Congressional Budget
Justifications. The FY2024 budget justifications proposed new mandatory funding for down payment assistance for
first-time, first-generation homebuyers as well as a set-aside of discretionary funds for down payment assistance in the
HOME account; see https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/CFO/documents/
2024_Mandatory_Affordable_Housing_Programs.pdf and https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/CFO/documents/
2024_CJ_Program_-_HOME.pdf, respectively.
31 For example, see the DASH Act (S. 680), discussed further in the “Housing Tax Proposals” section of this report.
Congressional Research Service
14
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Appropriations Act, 2023 (P.L. 117-328) for a new competitive grant program to help
communities address local barriers to housing supply, including regulatory barriers. HUD’s
implementation of this program is discussed further in the “Competitive Grants for Land Use and
Zoning Reform (HUD PRO Housing)” section.
In the 118th Congress, legislative proposals related to housing supply included some tax-related
proposals, such as the changes to the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit or establishment of a new
Neighborhood Homes Investment Credit, both discussed in the “Housing Tax Proposals” section
later in this report. The 118th Congress also held hearings examining issues related to housing
supply, including a September 2023 Senate Banking subcommittee hearing.32
In addition, the Biden Administration pursued administrative actions related to housing supply. In
2022, during the 117th Congress, the White House released a Housing Supply Action Plan that
discussed a number of actions the administration was taking as well as proposals it was calling on
Congress to enact.33 Subsequent releases from the White House in both the 117th and 118th
Congresses highlighted additional actions or proposals to increase the supply of affordable
housing or maintain existing housing.34 Among other things, the Administration undertook
activities to support the conversion of underused commercial properties, such as office buildings,
to housing, including providing guidance and technical assistance on how existing federal
funding sources could be used for such conversions.35 It also indefinitely extended a partnership
between the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and the Federal Financing Bank (FFB)
through which the FFB provides access to financing for certain FHA-insured multifamily risksharing loans originated by housing finance agencies (HFAs).36
Appropriations for Housing Programs
The majority of federal housing assistance programs are funded by annual discretionary
appropriations. The largest share of those appropriations is devoted to covering the costs of
maintaining federal rental assistance programs. Federal rental assistance programs provide
subsidies to the lowest income tenants, allowing them generally to pay 30% or less of their
incomes toward their housing costs.
32 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Subcommittee on Housing,
Transportation, and Community Development, Housing Supply and Innovation, 118th Cong., 1st sess., September 12,
2023, https://www.banking.senate.gov/hearings/housing-supply-and-innovation.
33 The White House, President Biden Announces New Actions to Ease the Burden of Housing Costs, May 16, 2022,
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/05/16/president-biden-announces-new-actions-toease-the-burden-of-housing-costs/.
34 See, e.g., The White House, Biden-Harris Administration Announces Progress in Implementing its Housing Supply
Action Plan, October 7, 2022, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/10/07/biden-harrisadministration-announces-progress-in-implementing-its-housing-supply-action-plan/; and Biden-Harris Administration
Announces Actions to Lower Housing Costs and Boost Supply, July 27, 2023, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefingroom/statements-releases/2023/07/27/biden-harris-administration-announces-actions-to-lower-housing-costs-andboost-supply/.
35 The White House, Fact Sheet: Biden-Harris Administration Takes Action to Create More Affordable Housing by
Converting Commercial Properties to Residential Use, October 27, 2023, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/
statements-releases/2023/10/27/fact-sheet-biden-harris-administration-takes-action-to-create-more-affordable-housingby-converting-commercial-properties-to-residential-use/.
36 See U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD and Treasury Extend Initiative to Finance the
Construction and Rehabilitation of Affordable Rental Homes for Low-Income Families, press release, February 29,
2024, https://www.hud.gov/press/press_releases_media_advisories/hud_no_24_042.
Congressional Research Service
15
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
More than half of HUD’s appropriations each year are devoted to maintaining the cost of
continuing assistance to the more than 4 million households served by the Section 8 Housing
Choice Voucher (HCV) and Section 8 project-based rental assistance programs. Funding needs
for the HCV program and project-based rental assistance have been increasing, both because of
increases in the number of people served, as well as the increased costs of maintaining assistance
for households that are currently served by the programs due to rents increasing faster than tenant
incomes.
Despite the large share of total HUD funding these rental assistance programs command, their
combined funding levels only permit them to serve an estimated one in four eligible families,
which results in long waiting lists for assistance in most communities.37 A similar dynamic plays
out in USDA’s Rural Housing Service (RHS) budget. Demand for housing assistance exceeds the
supply of subsidies, yet the largest share of RHS spending for rental housing programs is devoted
to maintaining rental assistance for current residents.38
In a budget environment with limits on discretionary spending, as were adopted in the Fiscal
Responsibility Act of 2023 (P.L. 118-5) in June 2023, pressure to provide increased funding to
maintain current services for existing rental assistance programs competes with pressure from
states, localities, and advocates to maintain or increase funding for other popular programs, such
as HUD’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, grants for homelessness
assistance, and funding for Native American housing programs.
One way this tension was addressed during the 118th Congress was through the use of emergencydesignated appropriations for regular program operations. This effectively funds a portion of
HUD’s rental assistance renewal needs outside of the standard budget constraints. (For more
information, see “Emergency-Designated Funding for Rental Assistance Renewals,” in CRS
Report R48253, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
(THUD) Appropriations for FY2025.)
Housing Tax Proposals
Congress has considered changes to the tax code in efforts to help individuals secure affordable
housing and to promote the production of affordable housing. In the 118th Congress, the Decent,
Affordable, Safe Housing for All (DASH) Act (S. 680 and H.R. 6970), contained the most
comprehensive housing-related tax proposals, though it was not enacted. The DASH Act would
have, among other things,
•
•
expanded the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) program,39 which is
intended to encourage the development of affordable rental housing for lowincome tenants;
created a middle-income housing tax credit to encourage the development of
affordable rental housing for middle-income tenants;
37 See Figure 6 of Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, America’s Rental Housing, 2017, p. 6,
http://www.jchs.harvard.edu//research-areas/reports/americas-rental-housing-2017.
38 The bulk of the RHS budget for rental housing is devoted to renewing existing Section 521 rental assistance contracts
in Section 515 and Section 514/516 rental housing properties. For more information about USDA’s rural housing
programs, see CRS Report RL31837, An Overview of USDA Rural Development Programs.
39 For more information, see CRS Report RS22389, An Introduction to the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit; CRS In
Focus IF11335, The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit: Policy Issues; and CRS Insight IN12070, The Low-Income
Housing Tax Credit: Lowering the 50% Bond Threshold to 25%.
Congressional Research Service
16
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
•
•
•
created a renter’s tax credit for property owners who reduce rents on eligible
tenants;
created a first-time homebuyers refundable tax credit of up to $15,000; and
instituted the Neighborhood Homes Investment Act (NHIA), which would have
created a tax credit intended to encourage the development of affordable homes
for ownership in lower-income areas.40 The NHIA was proposed in standalone
legislation (S. 657 and H.R. 3940) as well.
The Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act of 2023 (S. 1557/H.R. 3238), also introduced in
the 118th Congress, was an exclusively LIHTC-focused proposal. Similar to the DASH Act, the
proposal would have expanded the LIHTC program by increasing states’ per capita allocation
authority up to $4.875 beginning in 2024 (not including a required annual inflation adjustment). It
would also have made a number of changes pertaining to tenant eligibility and credit
determinations for projects. In addition, it would have changed the program’s name to the
“affordable housing tax credit.” Versions of the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act
were also introduced in every previous Congress since the 114th.
Competitive Grants for Land Use and Zoning Reform (HUD PRO
Housing)
A growing base of research indicates that laws and regulations that constrict housing supply—
such as exclusionary zoning—might contribute to increased housing prices and construction
costs.41 Some studies suggest that these cost effects are more pronounced in large metropolitan
areas on the east and west coasts of the United States.42 Others have suggested a more complex
relationship between land use restrictions and the cost of housing, depending on other factors that
may drive demand, such as the relocation of a major employer to a particular jurisdiction.43
Generally, it is difficult to measure the relative restrictiveness of land use controls at the national
level, due in part to the wide range of methods used by local governments to control land use and
development.44
The federal government has historically played a limited role in the development of zoning and
land use standards. Instead, local governments, acting in accordance with the constitutional police
40 For more information, see CRS In Focus IF11884, Neighborhood Homes Investment Act: Overview and Policy
Considerations.
41
Vicki Been, Ingrid Gould Ellen, and Katherine O’Regan, Supply Skepticism: Housing Supply and Affordability, NYU
Furman Center, August 20, 2018, p. 4, https://furmancenter.org/files/Supply_Skepticism_-_Final.pdf.
42 For example, see Joseph Gyourko and Jacob Krimmel, “The Impact of Local Residential Land Use Restrictions on
Land Values Across and Within Single Family Housing Markets,” NBER Working Paper Series, July 2021, p. 4; and
Jenny Schuetz, “Build More Homes Where People Want to Live,” in Fixer Upper: How to Repair America’s Broken
Housing Systems (Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution, 2022), pp. 23-24 (hereinafter, “Schuetz, Fixer Upper”).
43 Michael LaCour -Little and Weifeng Wu, “Density Control, Home Price Appreciation, and Rental Growth in the
United States,” Cityscape: A Journal of Policy Development and Research, vol. 23, no. 1 (2021), pp. 75-100.
44 For example, see ibid., p. 77; Schuetz, Fixer Upper, pp. 22-23; and Joseph Gyourko and Raven Molloy, “Regulation
and Housing Supply,” Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, Volume 5B, p. 1294,
https://faculty.wharton.upenn.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Regulation-and-Housing-Supply-1.pdf.
Congressional Research Service
17
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
powers45 delegated to them by state governments, have been the primary developers of zoning
and land use standards.46
Although land use controls are primarily driven by states and localities, some federal laws,
programs, and regulations can affect the nature of local land use controls. The Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2023 (CAA, P.L. 117-328, Division L, Title II), for example, included $85
million in funds for a competitive grant program to remove and/or replace land use controls that
limit the feasibility of affordable housing development (practices commonly referred to as
regulatory barriers to affordable housing).47
The grant program derives its authority from Title I of the Housing and Community Development
Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. §§5301 et seq.), the statute that authorizes the CDBG program.48 The
CAA measure also provides the HUD Secretary with authority to grant waivers and allow
alternative requirements, except in cases pertaining to fair housing, nondiscrimination, labor
standards, the environment, and low- and moderate-income benefit requirements. In September
2023, HUD posted a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) associated with these funds, under
the title of Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO Housing).49 The first awards under
the program were announced in June 2024.50 The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024
provided an additional $100 million for the PRO Housing program (P.L. 118-42, Division F, Title
II). HUD published a NOFO announcing the availability of the FY2024 funding in August 2024,
with applications due by October 22, 2024.51
Some Members of Congress have sought other options to influence local land use regulatory
practices. For example, the Yes In My Backyard Act (S. 1688 /H.R. 4834 ), reintroduced in the
118th Congress, would have expanded reporting requirements for certain CDBG grantees on
plans, adoption, or potential benefits of specific types of land-use policies.
For more information, see CRS Insight IN12271, HUD Pathways to Removing Obstacles to
Housing (PRO Housing) Competition.
45 Anika Singh Lemar, “The Role of States in Liberalizing Land Use,” North Carolina Law Review, vol. 97, no. 2
(January 1, 2019), p. 297.
46 Ibid.; and “Addressing Challenges to Affordable Housing in Land Use Law: Recognizing Affordable Housing as a
Right,” Harvard Law Review, vol. 135, no. 4, February 2022, p. 1107, https://harvardlawreview.org/wp-content/
uploads/2022/01/135-Harv.-L.-Rev.-1104.pdf.
47 See Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, “Explanatory Statement Submitted by Mr. Leahy, Chair of the Senate Committee on
Appropriations, Regarding H.R. 2617, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023,” Congressional Record, daily edition,
vol. 168 (December 20, 2022), p. S9340.
48 For further information, see CRS Report R46733, Community Development Block Grants: Funding and Allocation
Processes.
49 HUD, Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO Housing), FR-6700-N-98, September 7, 2023,
https://www.grants.gov/search-results-detail/350133.
50 HUD, PRO Housing FY23 Award Announcement, https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/comm_planning/
pro_housing/fy23awards.
51 HUD, FY24 Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO Housing), FR-6800-N-98, August 13, 2024,
https://www.grants.gov/search-results-detail/356013.
Congressional Research Service
18
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Rural Housing Programs
USDA’s RHS administers several housing programs specifically for rural areas.52 In the 118th
Congress, there was some interest in these rural housing programs in the context of the farm
bill,53 as well as in standalone legislative proposals.
Rural Housing and the Farm Bill
The 118th Congress included work on the farm bill, an omnibus law addressing agricultural and
food issues that is enacted roughly every five years.54 Prior to the 118th Congress, the most recent
farm bill was the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-334).
Farm bills typically include a Rural Development title55 that reauthorizes and amends programs
administered by USDA’s Rural Development (RD) agency. RHS, which administers the rural
housing programs, is part of USDA RD. However, farm bills—which are drafted by the House
and the Senate Agriculture Committees—do not typically include rural housing programs, as rural
housing has historically been under the jurisdiction of the House Financial Services Committee
and the Senate Banking Committee, respectively.56
While rural housing programs are not generally addressed in farm bills, there are past examples of
farm bills including select provisions related to rural housing programs, including the following:
•
•
•
past farm bills have amended the definition of rural that is used for the RHS rural
housing programs (see Section 6208 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 [P.L. 113-79]
and Section 6305 of the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018 [P.L. 115-334]);
the 2018 farm bill established a new grant program for eligible entities to provide
shelter and housing assistance to domestic violence survivors and their pets or
emotional support animals (see Section 12502(b) of the Agriculture Improvement
Act of 2018);57 and
the 2008 farm bill revised the definition of eligible farm laborer for purposes of
the Farm Labor Housing program to include references to aquacultural workers
(see Section 6205 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 [P.L. 110246]).
The 118th Congress enacted one-year extensions of the 2018 farm bill in November 2023 and
December 2024; a new farm bill was not enacted during the 118th Congress.
52 For more information on rural housing programs administered by RHS, see CRS Report R47044, USDA Rural
Housing Programs: An Overview.
53 See, for example, Caitlin Reilly, “Advocates eye farm bill to avert drop in affordable rural housing,” Roll Call, April
11, 2023, https://rollcall.com/2023/04/11/advocates-eye-farm-bill-to-avert-drop-in-affordable-rural-housing/. See also a
June 2023 letter to the Chairs and Ranking Members of the Senate Committees on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs and Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry signed by over 100 organizations at https://ruralhome.org/hacsnetwork-supports-improvements-to-usdas-rural-housing-service-in-letter-to-congress/.
54 For more information on the farm bill in general, see CRS In Focus IF12047, Farm Bill Primer: Background and
Status.
55 For more information on the Rural Development title of the farm bill, see CRS In Focus IF12038, Farm Bill Primer:
Rural Development Title.
56 In addition to the rural housing programs, RHS also administers several community facilities programs. Unlike the
housing programs, these community facilities programs are typically included in the farm bill.
57 This program is codified at 34 U.S.C. §20127.
Congressional Research Service
19
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Rural Housing Program Reform Proposals
In recent Congresses, bills have been introduced to make changes to certain rural housing
programs, with a particular focus on addressing concerns about USDA-assisted rental properties
being lost from the affordable housing stock due to mortgage maturations or prepayments. One of
these bills, the Strategy and Investment in Rural Housing Preservation Act, was reintroduced in
the 118th Congress (S. 1490). It would have made several changes to rural housing programs in an
effort to support the preservation of existing USDA-assisted rental properties and to expand rental
assistance options to help maintain affordability for tenants in affected properties. One such
change would have been to provide USDA authority to “decouple” Section 521 rental assistance
contracts from Section 515 and Section 514 loans, allowing properties to continue to receive
rental assistance after their loan has matured.
Another bill that was introduced in the 118th Congress is the Rural Housing Service Reform Act
of 2023 (S. 1389, introduced in May 2023, and S. 2790, an updated version introduced in
September 2023).58 Introduced by the Chair of the Senate Banking Committee’s Housing,
Transportation, and Community Development subcommittee with bipartisan co-sponsors, these
bills included identical or similar provisions to those of S. 1490 and would have also made
changes to several other rural housing programs. A companion bill (H.R. 6785) was introduced in
the House in December 2023.
In May 2023, the Senate Banking Committee’s Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and
Community Development held a hearing on “Rural Housing Legislation” in which several of
these proposals were discussed.59
For more information on USDA’s rural housing programs in general, including background on
rural rental housing preservation concerns and past policy proposals, see CRS Report R47044,
USDA Rural Housing Programs: An Overview.
Native American Housing
American Indians and Alaska Natives living in tribal areas experience higher rates of many
housing problems than the U.S. population as a whole.60 In addition, factors such as the legal
status of trust lands or the remote locations of many tribal lands can pose challenges for
housing.61 Native Hawaiians often face similar housing challenges.62 In the 118th Congress,
58 See U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Mike Rounds Announce More Bipartisan Support for Legislation to Modernize and
Reform Rural Housing Programs, press release, September 19, 2023, https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senators-tinasmith-mike-rounds-announce-more-bipartisan-support-for-legislation-to-modernize-and-reform-rural-housingprograms/.
59 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Subcommittee on Housing,
Transportation, and Community Development, Rural Housing Legislation, 118th Cong., 1st sess., May 2, 2023,
https://www.banking.senate.gov/hearings/rural-housing-legislation.
60 Nancy Pindus, G. Thomas Kingsley, Jennifer Biess, et al., Housing Needs of American Indians and Alaska Natives in
Tribal Areas: A Report From the Assessment of American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian Housing Needs,
prepared for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research,
January 2017, https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdf/HNAIHousingNeeds.pdf. See, in particular, pp.
xviii-xxii and 63-73.
61 Ibid., p. xv; and David Listokin, Kenneth Temkin, Nancy Pindus, et al., Mortgage Lending on Tribal Land: A Report
From the Assessment of American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian Housing Needs, prepared for U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research, January 2017, p. vii,
https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdf/NAHSG-Lending.pdf.
62 Kristen Corey, Jennifer Biess, Nancy Pindus, et al., Housing Needs of Native Hawaiians: A Report from the
(continued...)
Congressional Research Service
20
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
several bills related to Native American housing were active. These included bills to reauthorize
the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act (NAHASDA), though they
were not enacted. It also included other bills related to Native American housing, including
certain changes to VA loans for Native American veterans enacted in December 2024.
NAHASDA Reauthorization Efforts
NAHASDA authorizes the Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG), the largest federal program that
provides housing assistance for tribes. Through the IHBG, HUD provides formula funding to
federally recognized tribes and Alaska Native villages that can be used for a range of affordable
housing activities. As amended, NAHASDA also authorizes the Native Hawaiian Housing Block
Grant (NHHBG), which provides funding for affordable housing activities that benefit Native
Hawaiians eligible to reside on the Hawaiian Home Lands.
The most recent authorization for most NAHASDA programs expired at the end of FY2013,
although Congress has continued to fund NAHASDA programs in annual appropriations laws.63
NAHASDA reauthorization legislation has been introduced and considered to varying degrees in
every Congress since the 113th, but none has ultimately been enacted.
In the 118th Congress, NAHASDA reauthorization bills were introduced in both the Senate and
the House. In the Senate, the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of
2023 (S. 2285) was ordered to be reported by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs in July
2023. Shortly thereafter, language that was largely similar to S. 2285 was included in the Senatepassed version of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 (NDAA; S. 2226).
Both the standalone NAHASDA reauthorization bill and the language in the Senate-passed
NDAA would have reauthorized the IHBG and NHHBG for a number of years, made certain
changes to the IHBG program, and included provisions related to certain other Native American
housing programs.64 The NAHASDA provisions were not included in the enacted version of the
FY2024 NDAA (P.L. 118-31). A separate NAHASDA reauthorization bill (H.R. 6949) that
differed from the Senate bill in some ways was introduced in the House in January 2024.
No NAHASDA reauthorization legislation was ultimately enacted during the 118th Congress.
Other Bills Related to Native American Housing
Other bills focused on Native American housing were also considered during the 118th Congress.
In December 2024, changes to the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Native American Direct Loan
(NADL) program65 were enacted as part of the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans
Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act (P.L. 118-210). That law also included provisions
establishing a relending program through which VA can lend funding to Native Community
Development Financial Institutions (Native CDFIs) to provide home loans to qualified Native
American veterans living on trust land. The relending program has a sunset date of September 30,
Assessment of American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian Housing Needs, U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research, May 2017, https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/
default/files/pdf/HNNH.pdf.
63 The NHHBG has not been reauthorized since its original authorization expired in FY2005, although it has generally
continued to receive funding in appropriations acts.
64 While the NAHASDA language in the Senate-passed version of the NDAA was largely similar to the committeereported bill, there were some differences.
65 For more information on the NADL, see CRS Report R42504, VA Housing: Guaranteed Loans, Direct Loans, and
Specially Adapted Housing Grants under the heading “Direct Loans for Native American Veterans (Including Guam,
American Samoa, and CNMI).”
Congressional Research Service
21
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
2027. Both the NADL changes and the Native CDFI relending program for VA loans had been
included in a standalone bill, the Native American Direct Loan Improvement Act (S. 185), which
was ordered to be reported by the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs in February 2023.
Other bills considered in the 118th Congress included the Tribal Trust Land Homeownership Act
(S. 70), which would have required the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to produce title status
reports for mortgages on trust land within certain timeframes and included other provisions
related to BIA procedures; it was passed by the Senate in July 2023. An identical bill (H.R. 3579)
was introduced in the House. In addition, S. 1389 and S. 2790, the Rural Housing Service Reform
Act of 2023 (discussed above), both included a provision that would have formally authorized an
existing USDA Rural Housing Service demonstration program that lends Section 502 direct loan
funding to Native CDFIs to relend to eligible homebuyers in tribal communities.66 A standalone
bill, the Native American Rural Homeownership Improvement Act of 2023 (S. 1941), would also
have formally authorized this program; like the Rural Housing Service Reform Act, this bill was
introduced by the Chair of the Senate Banking Committee’s Housing, Transportation, and
Community Development subcommittee.
Status of COVID-19 Supplemental Funding for Housing
In response to housing-related concerns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the 116th and 117th
Congresses provided supplemental funding for several new and existing housing programs,
including in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act, P.L. 116136),67 the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021 (Division M
of P.L. 116-260), and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA, P.L. 117-2).68 Congress has
expressed interest in the distribution, usage, and effectiveness of this funding, and the Fiscal
Responsibility Act of 2023 (FRA; P.L. 118-5) rescinded a portion of unspent COVID-19 relief
funding for several housing programs.69
Treasury Programs
Some of the COVID-19-related housing funding was provided to the Department of the Treasury
for a new Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) program and a new Homeowner Assistance Fund
(HAF) designed to keep renters and homeowners, respectively, in their homes.
Treasury received two rounds of funding for ERA: ERA-1 ($25.0 billion) was funded in the
FY2021 COVID-19 supplemental appropriations law and ERA-2 ($21.6 billion) was funded by
ARPA. The obligation period for ERA-1 expired in the 117th Congress. Grantees have until
September 2025 to obligate ERA-2 funding. Grantees with slow obligation and expenditure rates
66 For more information on the Native CDFI Relending Demonstration Program, see USDA’s website at
https://www.rd.usda.gov/programs-services/single-family-housing-programs/native-community-development-financialinstitution-relending-demonstration-program.
67 For more information, see CRS Insight IN11319, Funding for HUD in the CARES Act.
68 For more information, see CRS Insight IN11641, Housing Funding in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
69 Specifically, the FRA rescinded unobligated balances of funding that were provided in the CARES Act for TenantBased Rental Assistance (§25 of the FRA), Native American housing programs (§26), Housing for Persons with
Disabilities (§27), Project-Based Rental Assistance (§28), and Housing for the Elderly (§29); funding that was provided
in the 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act for Emergency Rental Assistance (or ERA-1) (§36); and funding that was
provided in the ARPA for Fair Housing activities (§30), Native American housing programs (§59), and certain rural
housing programs (§63). The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) score did not include separate estimates of the
amount of the rescissions for these housing programs, as they did not include estimates for accounts where rescissions
were estimated to be under $50 million. See the CBO table at https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2023-06/59225Rescissions.pdf.
Congressional Research Service
22
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
were subject to recapture and reallocation of their funding; there were two rounds of ERA-2
funding reallocation during the 118th Congress, in January and April 2023.70 Through the second
quarter of 2024 (the period covered by the most recent program expenditure reports published by
Treasury as of the cover date of this report), grantees had spent nearly $42 billion in ERA funds to
make almost 15 million payments to households.71 (For more information about ERA, see CRS
Report R46688, Pandemic Relief: The Emergency Rental Assistance Program.)
Treasury received $9.6 billion for HAF in ARPA. Grantees have until September 30, 2026, to use
their funds to provide assistance to eligible homeowners. Through the second quarter of 2024 (the
period covered by the most recent program expenditure reports published by Treasury as of the
cover date of this report), states and other eligible entities had obligated $8.5 billion and
expended $8.3 billion providing assistance to nearly 550,000 homeowners.72
HUD Programs
Other pandemic-related funding was provided to HUD for a variety of programs and activities,
including supplemental funding for CDBG, the HOME Investment Partnerships Program
(HOME), Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG), Native American housing programs, and
emergency housing vouchers. Some of this funding received attention in the 118th Congress
because of expenditure deadlines or general oversight questions.
For example, HUD received $5 billion from ARPA for new Emergency Housing Vouchers
(EHVs), which are HCVs for persons who are homeless or at high risk of housing instability.
HUD used this funding to award 70,000 new vouchers to local public housing authorities (PHAs)
across the country in May 2021. Some PHAs initially struggled to lease-up the vouchers (i.e.,
award them to eligible households who successfully locate a unit that will accept the voucher). In
an attempt to improve leasing, HUD issued guidance to PHAs on how they could voluntarily
return EHVs to HUD to be reallocated to other PHAs more likely to use them.73 The agency also
announced in 2022 a process by which it could revoke EHVs from PHAs that had not
successfully leased any of their vouchers, and reallocate them to other PHAs, identifying up to 22
agencies at risk of revocation because they had leased none of their EHVs.74 A second
announcement in 2023 identified 38 PHAs potentially at risk of revocation because they had
leased less than 75% of their EHVs.75 As of November 2023, approximately 87% of awarded
70 Information about ERA reallocations can be found at https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/coronavirus/assistance-
for-state-local-and-tribal-governments/emergency-rental-assistance-program.
71 According to Treasury data, ERA1 expenditures totaled $22.69 billion from Q12021-Q42022, and those funds served
3.9 million unique households with 6.8 million payments (https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/Q1-2021-Q42022-ERA-Demographic-Data.xlsx); ERA 2 expenditures totaled $19.15 billion from Q2 2021-Q2 2024, and those
funds served 3 million unique households with 8 million payments (https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/ERA2Cumulative-Program-Data-Q2-2021-Q2-2024.xlsx). Treasury data do not specify if the unique households figures from
ERA-1 and ERA-2 include any overlap.
72 U.S. Department of Treasury, Homeowner Assistance Fund Quarterly Data through Q2, 2024, available at
https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/coronavirus/assistance-for-state-local-and-tribal-governments/homeownerassistance-fund/reporting. In addition to the Treasury reporting, some states maintain public dashboards with data on
HAF program activity. The National Council of State Housing Agencies provides links to state HAF program
dashboards at https://www.ncsha.org/homeowner-assistance-fund/.
73 See HUD Notice PIH 2022-06, Emergency Housing Vouchers – Reallocation of Awards, March 10, 2022.
74 See HUD Notice PIH 2022-22, Revoke and Reallocation of Emergency Housing Voucher Awards, August 11, 2022.
75 See HUD Notice PIH 2023-31, Revocation and Reallocation of Emergency Housing Voucher Awards CY2024,
October 13, 2023.
Congressional Research Service
23
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
EHVs were under lease.76 As of September 30, 2023, PHAs could not reissue EHVs when a
family receiving one leaves the program; never-leased vouchers can continue to be issued. This
means that the number of EHV vouchers will decrease over time, as families exit the program and
their vouchers are not reissued. As of December 2024, there were 61,130 EHVs under lease.77
In addition, HUD’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) has been conducting oversight related to
HUD programs and COVID-19, including work on HUD’s administration of supplemental
funding provided in response to the pandemic.78 For example, over the last few years, the HUD
OIG released reports discussing implementation challenges, or lack thereof, faced by grantees
under certain programs.79 It has also released inventories of potential fraud schemes that could
affect supplemental COVID-19 funding to assist HUD in safeguarding pandemic relief funds.80
Homelessness
According to HUD point-in-time (PIT) count data, the number of people experiencing
homelessness in 2023 reached its highest level since 2007. The PIT count, overseen by HUD and
administered at the state and local level, is perhaps the most consistent and comprehensive
measure of people experiencing homelessness. The PIT count is meant to capture the number of
people experiencing unsheltered homelessness (living in places not meant for human habitation)
and sheltered homelessness (living in emergency shelter or transitional housing) on one night in
January each year. The number of people experiencing homelessness as measured in the 2023 PIT
count was 653,104, an increase of 12% compared to 2022; in 2007, the PIT count was 647,258
people.81
Both the number of people who were unsheltered and sheltered increased in the 2023 PIT count
compared to recent years. The unsheltered population began gradually increasing each year from
76 HUD Emergency Housing Voucher Dashboard, available at https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/
public_indian_housing/ehv/dashboard, accessed 11/2023.
77 Ibid; accessed 12/6/2024.
78 See the HUD OIG’s website at https://www.hudoig.gov/priority-focus-areas/covid-19-oversight. See also the HUD
OIG’s list of ongoing work at https://hudoig.gov/library/ongoing-work, which includes some work related to COVID19 funding.
79 See, for example, HUD OIG, HUD’s Assistance and Grantee Challenges With the Office of Native American
Programs’ COVID-19 Recovery Programs, 2023-LA-0005, July 28, 2023, https://www.hudoig.gov/reportspublications/report/huds-assistance-and-grantee-challenges-office-native-american-programs; HUD OIG, Community
Development Block Grant CARES Act Implementation Challenges, 2022-LA-0003, September 28, 2022,
https://hudoig.gov/reports-publications/report/community-development-block-grant-cares-act-implementationchallenges; Emergency Solutions Grants CARES Act Implementation Challenges, 2022-LA-0002, August 17, 2022,
https://www.hudoig.gov/reports-publications/report/emergency-solutions-grants-cares-act-implementation-challenges;
and Public Housing Agencies’ Experiences and Challenges Regarding the Administration of HUD’s CARES Act Funds,
2022-CH-0801, November 16, 2021, https://hudoig.gov/reports-publications/memorandum/public-housing-agenciesexperiences-and-challenges-regarding.
80 See, for example, HUD OIG, Fraud Risk Inventory for the Tenant- and Project-Based Rental Assistance, HOME,
and Operating Fund Programs’ CARES and ARP Act Funds, 2022-FO-0007, September 29, 2022, https://hudoig.gov/
reports-publications/report/fraud-risk-inventory-tenant-and-project-based-rental-assistance-home; and Fraud Risk
Inventory for the CDBG and ESG CARES Act Funds, 2022-FO-0801, October 12, 2021, https://hudoig.gov/reportspublications/report/fraud-risk-inventory-cdbg-and-esg-cares-act-funds.
81 HUD notes 2007 as the year PIT count reporting began. See HUD, The 2023 Annual Homelessness Assessment
Report (AHAR) to Congress, December 2023, p. 4, https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdf/2023-AHARPart-1.pdf (hereinafter 2023 AHAR). PIT counts also took place in 2005 and 2006. The reports can be found at
https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/ahar.html. But while PIT count data from 2007-2014 were adjusted with the
release of the 2015 PIT count, data from the earlier reports were not adjusted. See The 2015 Annual Homelessness
Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress, November 2015, p. 8, https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdf/
2015-AHAR-Part-1.pdf.
Congressional Research Service
24
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
a low of 173,268 in 2015 to 256,610 in 2023, an increase of 48% and the highest number
captured in HUD reporting (exceeding 2007, when 255,857 people were unsheltered).82 The
number of people experiencing sheltered homelessness in 2023 was 396,494, an increase of
nearly 14% from 2022, and the highest it has been since 2010, when 403,543 people were living
in shelter.83
Prior to the 2023 PIT count, the overall reported number of people experiencing homelessness
had remained relatively stable from 2013 through 2022 despite growing housing affordability
challenges (see “Housing Market Conditions”).84 It is possible that resources made available due
to the COVID-19 pandemic provided housing support for people who might otherwise have been
at risk of homelessness.85 Between the CARES Act and ARPA, Congress appropriated nearly $15
billion for HUD programs targeted specifically to assist people experiencing homelessness, and
ERA and state and local fiscal recovery funds were also used to assist people at risk of housing
instability and homelessness.86 As these resources expire, the risk of homelessness for some
people may be increasing.87
Leading into the 118th Congress, the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH)
released All In: The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness.88 This report was
the most recent in a series of plans to prevent and end homelessness released by USICH, as
required by statute.89 On March 8, 2023, the Senate Banking Committee Subcommittee on
Housing, Transportation, and Community Development held a hearing on the plan.90
82 2023 AHAR, p. 2.
83 Ibid.
84 Between 2013 and 2022, the overall PIT count did not increase or decrease by more than 3% from one year to the
next.
85 U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, “Data Reports Show that Surge in Homelessness Was Averted
During COVID-19 National Emergency,” press release, August 22, 2023, https://www.hud.gov/press/
press_releases_media_advisories/hud_no_23_178.
86 For more information on ERA, see CRS Report R46688, Pandemic Relief: The Emergency Rental Assistance
Program. See also, National Council of State Housing Finance Agencies, States Are Using Fiscal Recovery Funds for
Affordable Housing, https://www.ncsha.org/advocacy-issues/coronavirus-state-and-local-fiscal-recovery-funds/,
accessed April 17, 2023.
87 See, for example, Katie Shepherd, “Local Md. officials plead for state aid as pandemic rent relief wanes,”
Washington Post, March 13, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/03/13/pandemic-rent-reliefwaning-maryland/.
88 U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, All In: The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness,
December 2022, https://www.usich.gov/All_In.pdf.
89 42 U.S.C. §11313(a)(1). Previously, USICH released Opening Doors, The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and
End Homelessness in 2010, and updated the report in 2011 and 2015. Another plan, Expanding the Toolbox, The Whole
of Government Response to Homelessness, was released in 2020.
90 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Subcommittee on Housing,
Transportation, and Community Development, The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness, hearing,
118th Cong., 1st sess., March 8, 2023, https://www.banking.senate.gov/hearings/the-federal-strategic-plan-to-preventand-end-homelessness.
Congressional Research Service
25
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Housing Quality
In committee reports accompanying appropriations measures, via targeted funding,91 in requests
for GAO reports,92 and through oversight hearings,93 some Members of Congress have expressed
concern about the physical quality of federally assisted housing specifically, as well as health and
safety problems present in the U.S. housing stock more broadly.
For federally assisted housing—much of which is subsidized through HUD programs—Congress
directed HUD to develop a standardized protocol to be used to inspect HUD-assisted housing
across programs to replace the agency’s multiple inspection systems.94 In response, HUD
launched what it termed the National Standards for the Physical Inspection of Real Estate
(NSPIRE) initiative to establish a new standardized inspection regime for HUD-assisted housing.
The NSPIRE standards are more directly focused on health and safety concerns than previous
inspections standards, and the initiative’s protocols are designed to increase consistency across
inspectors and allow for earlier intervention for properties in disrepair. NSPIRE was tested over
several years and began its implementation in 2023, although its full implementation is not
complete, as the compliance deadlines for several programs have been delayed until 2025.95
Additionally, Congress has approved several laws in recent years directing HUD to increase
safety requirements for federally assisted housing, including as they pertain to carbon
monoxide,96 radon,97 lead hazards,98 and fire safety.99 Some of these new requirements are
included in the NSPIRE protocols, but in the response to comments on the NSPIRE final rule,
91 See, for example, special funding for radon mitigation and lead risk assessments discussed later in this section.
92 See, for example, U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), Real Estate Assessment Center: HUD Should
Improve Physical Inspection Process and Oversight of Inspectors, GAO-19-254, March 21, 2019,
https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-19-254.
93 See, for example, U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Subcommittee on
Housing, Transportation, and Community Development, “Safe at Home: Preserving and Improving Federally Assisted
Housing, Examining Threats in Housing and Especially Public Housing,” hearing, 117 th Cong., 1st sess., July 20, 2021,
S.Rept. 117-570 (Washington, DC: GPO, 2023).
94 The history of congressional directives, beginning with the joint explanatory statement accompanying the FY2016
HUD appropriations act, is reviewed in the background section of HUD, “Notice of Continuation of Demonstration To
Test Proposed New Method of Assessing the Physical Conditions of Voucher-Assisted Housing,” 84 Federal Register
24416-24417, May 28, 2019.
95 HUD published the final NSPIRE rule on May 11, 2023. It stated that public housing inspections using NSPIRE
would begin on July 1, 2023, and multifamily and all other programs subject to inspections using NSPIRE would begin
on October 1, 2023. HUD, “Economic Growth Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act: Implementation of
National Standards for the Physical Inspection of Real Estate (NSPIRE),” 88 Federal Register 30442, May 11, 2023
(hereinafter, “NSPIRE Final Rule”). HUD later extended the implementation date for programs other than public
housing and multifamily housing (including the HCV program and HUD grant programs) to October 1, 2024, then to
October 1, 2025. HUD, “Economic Growth Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act: Implementation of
National Standards for the Physical Inspection of Real Estate (NSPIRE); Extension of NSPIRE Compliance Date for
HCV, PBV and Section 8 Moderate Rehab and CPD Programs,” 89 Federal Register 55645, July 5, 2024.
96
Section 101, Title I, Division Q of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (P.L. 116-260) contained the text of
Carbon Monoxide Alarms or Detectors in Federally Insured Housing, requiring CO alarms or detectors to be installed
in certain HUD-assisted housing within two years of enactment.
97 In each of FY2021-FY2024, Congress has funded a radon testing and mitigation resident safety demonstration. It
was funded in the Public Housing Fund account in FY2021 and in the Lead Hazard Reduction account in FY2022,
FY2023, and FY2024.
98 In FY2022 and FY2023, Congress funded a lead-based paint risk assessment demonstration in the Housing Choice
Voucher program in the Lead Hazard Reduction account.
99 Title VI, Division AA of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (P.L. 117-328) contained the text of the Public
and Federally Assisted Housing Fire Safety Act of 2022, which requires the installation of hard-wired smoke detectors
in federally assisted housing.
Congressional Research Service
26
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
HUD states that it will “continue to update and publish guidance on other environmental hazards
that are not fully addressed by NSPIRE, such as radon, lead-based paint, carbon monoxide, and
other environmental health hazards. The NSPIRE inspection is not intended to serve as the only
way HUD assesses compliance with all environmental health laws and related requirements.”100
In terms of unassisted private market housing, the federal government has historically provided
resources to address residential lead-based paint hazards via grants to state and localities
administered by HUD. Since 2018, Congress has not only increased the funding it provides for
lead-based paint hazard reduction grants,101 it has also provided HUD with additional funds to
address other health and safety hazards in private, unassisted housing via the Healthy Homes
Initiative.102 Since FY2021, this has included funding for a new Older Adults Home Modification
grant program, which provides funding via nonprofits and public agencies to make safety and
functional home modification repairs and renovations for low-income elderly homeowners.
Implementation of Housing-Related Provisions in the Inflation
Reduction Act
The 117th Congress passed, and President Biden signed, budget reconciliation legislation known
as the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA, P.L. 117-169). While earlier versions of FY2022 budget
reconciliation legislation in the 117th Congress would have included significant new funding for
affordable housing programs,103 most of that proposed housing funding was not included in the
IRA. However, the IRA did include a number of programs that affect housing that were being
implemented during the 118th Congress.
HUD Green and Resilient Retrofit Program
The IRA provided $1 billion in mandatory funding—which can be used for grants and/or to
support up to $4 billion in loans—to HUD for a Green and Resilient Retrofit Program to fund
certain types of improvements to existing HUD-assisted multifamily properties. Specifically, this
funding can be used for loans or grants to finance projects that improve energy or water
efficiency, enhance indoor air quality or sustainability, implement the use of certain technologies,
or address climate resilience. Properties assisted through the Project-Based Section 8, Section
202, and Section 811 programs are eligible. HUD released an implementation notice and funding
availability announcement in May 2023 and has been accepting applications and making awards
on a rolling basis.104 HUD has stated that it intends to award approximately $2 billion in total
funding (both loans and grants);105 as of September 2024, HUD had reported making over $1
billion in awards (both loans and grants).106
100 NSPIRE Rule, p. 30457.
101 From FY2017 to FY2024, the amount of funding provided for Lead Hazard Reduction grants increased by 138%.
102 From FY2017 to FY2024, the amount of funding provided for Healthy Homes Initiative grants increased by 367%.
103 For a description of affordable housing funding included in earlier versions of the legislation, see CRS Report
R46916, FY2022 Reconciliation: Title IV, House Financial Services Committee Provisions.
104 HUD Notice H 2023-05, Green and Resilient Retrofit Program for Multifamily Housing (GRRP), May 11, 2023,
https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/Housing/documents/H-2023-05_GRRP_Notice_issued_2023-05-11.pdf.
105 https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/Housing/documents/GRRP_Overview_FactSheet.pdf
106 https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/Housing/images/All_Cohorts_update_web_card_111824.JPG
Congressional Research Service
27
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
DOE Home Energy Rebate Programs
The IRA also included funding for two new home energy rebate programs107 through the
Department of Energy (DOE): $4.3 billion for Home Energy Performance-Based, Whole-House
Rebates, also known as the HOMES (Home Owner Managing Energy Savings) rebate program;
and $4.5 billion for a High-Efficiency Electric Home Rebate (HEEHR) program (of which $4.275
billion is for state energy offices and $225 million is for Indian tribes).108
•
HOMES provides rebates for energy efficiency upgrades that improve the overall energy
performance of single-family homes or multifamily buildings, with larger rebates for
households with incomes of less than 80% of area median income (AMI) or for dwellings
in multifamily buildings occupied by such households. Multifamily buildings are eligible
provided at least 50% of dwelling units are occupied by households with incomes less
than 80% of AMI.
•
HEEHR provides rebates for qualified electrification projects, such as purchase and
installation of certain electrical appliances. The percentage of the rebate depends on
whether the household has annual income below 80% of AMI, or from 80% to not greater
than 150% of AMI, with lower percentages for the latter. Projects for households with
incomes above 150% of AMI are generally not eligible. Multifamily buildings are
eligible provided at least 50% of the residents are households that satisfy the income
eligibility criteria.
DOE announced state allocations and program requirements in July 2023; it subsequently updated
its program requirements.109 DOE has been accepting states’ applications for the funds on a
rolling basis. Applications must be received by January 31, 2025, and states were to notify DOE
by August 16, 2024 if they intended to decline the funds for one or both programs.110 DOE’s
website provides a tracker that shows which states have launched their programs and which are
still in the application process at https://www.energy.gov/home-energy-rebates.
For the tribal HEEHR funding, DOE announced final tribal allocations111 and program
requirements112 in November 2023. DOE will accept applications from Indian tribes for this
107 Information on these rebate programs is available on DOE’s website at https://www.energy.gov/scep/home-energy-
rebate-programs-guidance and https://www.energy.gov/scep/tribal-home-energy-rebates. Frequently Asked Questions
are at https://www.energy.gov/scep/home-energy-rebate-programs-frequently-asked-questions.
108 Section 50121, Home Energy Performance-Based, Whole-House Rebates; and Section 50122, High-Efficiency
Electric Home Rebate Program. The IRA also provided $200 million for training and education for contractors
involved in these rebate programs; see Section 50123, State-Based Home Energy Efficiency Contractor Training
Grants.
109 Allocations and program requirements are available on DOE’s website at https://www.energy.gov/scep/homeenergy-rebates-application-guidance.
110 DOE, Inflation Reduction Act Home Energy Rebates, Home Efficiency Rebates Program (Sec. 50121) Home
Electrification and Appliance Rebates Program (Sec. 50122), Program Requirements & Application Instructions, v. 2,
June 17, 2024, https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2024-06/program-requirements-and-applicationinstructions_061324.pdf.
111 DOE, Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates Program for Indian Tribes (Sec. 50122): Allocations to Indian
Tribes, https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2023-11/Tribal-Allocations-11.9-1.pdf.
112 DOE, Inflation Reduction Act Home Energy Rebates, Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates Program for
Indian Tribes (Sec. 50122), Program Requirements & Application Instructions, November 17, 2023, available at
https://www.energy.gov/scep/articles/home-electrification-and-appliance-rebates-program-indian-tribes-programrequirements.
Congressional Research Service
28
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
funding on a rolling basis until May 1, 2025; tribes are to notify DOE by that date if they intend
to decline the funds.113
For both rebate programs, DOE guidance specifies that states must set aside at least 10% of funds
for eligible low-income multifamily housing. DOE has made multifamily affordable housing
properties that are receiving assistance under the primary federal housing assistance programs
categorically eligible for assistance under both programs. This includes public housing, Section 8
and other project-based rental assistance, LIHTC, and Housing Choice Vouchers (if at least 50%
of units in that property are occupied by voucher holders).114
For more information, see CRS In Focus IF12258, The Inflation Reduction Act: Financial
Incentives for Residential Energy Efficiency and Electrification Projects and CRS Report
R47698, Home Energy Rebates from the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, P.L. 117-169:
Frequently Asked Questions.
EPA Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund
The IRA provided $27 billion to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for a new
Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) to provide competitive grants to states, municipalities,
tribal governments, and certain nonprofits.115 The grants can be used to provide financial and
technical assistance for projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, with a focus on projects
that benefit low-income and disadvantaged communities.
While not focused on housing specifically, the GGRF may be used for some activities related to
housing. For example, one of the three competitions through which EPA made these funds
available, Solar for All, awarded funds to eligible entities to expand existing residential solar
programs, or develop and implement new residential solar programs, in low-income and
disadvantaged communities.116 The other two programs are a National Clean Investment Fund
that awarded grants to national nonprofits to provide financing for clean technology projects
nationwide, and a Clean Communities Investment Accelerator that awarded grants to nonprofits
to provide funding and technical assistance to support clean technology projects in low-income
and disadvantaged communities. Funds under both of these competitions can be used for certain
types of clean technology activities related to affordable and sustainable housing as well as other
types of investments.117 EPA announced awards under all three competitions in August 2024.118
For more information on the GGRF, see CRS In Focus IF12387, EPA’s Greenhouse Gas
Reduction Fund (GGRF).
113 DOE, Inflation Reduction Act Home Energy Rebates, Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates Program for
Indian Tribes (Sec. 50122), Program Requirements & Application Instructions, November 17, 2023.
114 DOE, Federal Programs Approved for Categorical Eligibility for DOE Home Energy Rebates (“Recognized
Programs”), v 1.1, October 13, 2023, https://www.energy.gov/scep/articles/ira-50121-50122-home-energy-rebatescategorical-eligibility-list.
115 Section 60103, Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. More information is available on EPA’s website at
https://www.epa.gov/greenhouse-gas-reduction-fund.
116 For more information, see EPA’s website at https://www.epa.gov/greenhouse-gas-reduction-fund/solar-all.
117 See the program information and award descriptions at https://www.epa.gov/greenhouse-gas-reduction-fund/
national-clean-investment-fund and https://www.epa.gov/greenhouse-gas-reduction-fund/clean-communitiesinvestment-accelerator.
118 EPA, “EPA Awards $27B in Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund Grants to Accelerate Clean Energy Solutions,
Combat the Climate Crisis, and Save Families Money,” press release, August 16, 2024, https://www.epa.gov/
newsreleases/epa-awards-27b-greenhouse-gas-reduction-fund-grants-accelerate-clean-energy-solutions.
Congressional Research Service
29
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Additional IRA Housing-Related Provisions
Other housing-related provisions in the IRA included extensions and modifications of existing
home energy tax incentives119 and funding to assist states and local governments in adopting and
implementing the latest building energy codes for residential and other buildings, including zeroenergy stretch codes.120 In addition, the IRA provided $150 million to the Bureau of Indian
Affairs (BIA) to provide assistance to tribes for zero-emissions home electrification purposes.121
BIA awarded this funding to tribes in two funding rounds, with grant awards announced in March
2024122 and September 2024.123
Fair Housing
The evolving administrative and judicial interpretations of certain requirements of the Fair
Housing Act, including rulemaking during the 118th Congress, have been of ongoing interest to
Congress.
Congress enacted the Fair Housing Act “to provide, within constitutional limitations, for fair
housing throughout the United States.”124 Congress passed the act in 1968 after years of private
and government-sanctioned housing discrimination that resulted in racially segregated
neighborhoods and unequal access to housing.125 As amended, the act prohibits discrimination in
119 Section 13301, Extension, Increase, and Modifications of Nonbusiness Energy Property Credit; Section 13302,
Residential Clean Electricity Credit; and Section 13304, Extension, Increase, and Modifications of New Energy
Efficient Home Credit.
120 Section 50131, Assistance for Latest and Zero Building Energy Code Adoption, provided $1 billion to DOE for this
purpose. Zero energy stretch codes refers to the voluntary zero energy provisions of the 2021 International Energy
Conservation Code or equivalent stretch code. A stretch code is one that exceeds the expected energy-efficiency
performance of a building energy code. For more information on this funding, see DOE’s website at
https://www.energy.gov/scep/technical-assistance-adoption-building-energy-codes.
121 Section 80003, Tribal Electrification Program. For more information, see BIA’s website at https://www.bia.gov/
service/electrification.
122 BIA, “Biden-Harris Administration Announces $72 Million from President’s Investing in America Agenda to
Electrify Homes Across Indian Country with Clean Energy,” press release, March 5, 2024, https://www.bia.gov/news/
biden-harris-administration-announces-72-million-presidents-investing-america-agenda-electrify.
123 BIA, “Biden-Harris Administration Announces $71 Million to Electrify Homes Across Indian Country with Clean
Energy through President’s Investing in America Agenda,” press release, September 26, 2024, https://www.doi.gov/
pressreleases/biden-harris-administration-announces-71-million-electrify-homes-across-indian.
124 42 U.S.C. §3601. The Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. §§3601-3631) was originally enacted as Title VIII of the Civil
Rights Act of 1968 (P.L. 90-284).
125 See NAACP v. HUD, 817 F.2d 149, 154-55 (1st Cir. 1987); Nat’l Fair Hous. All. v. Carson, 330 F. Supp. 3d 14, 24
(D.D.C. 2015). See also Thomas J. Sugrue, “From Jim Crow to Fair Housing,” in The Fight for Fair Housing: Causes,
Consequences, and Future Implications of the 1968 Fair Housing Act, ed. Gregory D. Squires (New York, NY:
Routledge, an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, 2018), pp. 14-27.
Congressional Research Service
30
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
the sale, rental, or financing of housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex,126
familial status, and disability.127
The Fair Housing Act bars intentional discrimination, through which plaintiffs allege that a
defendant made a housing decision based on “a discriminatory intent or motive.”128 In addition,
HUD and courts had historically recognized that the act also bars disparate impact (also referred
to as discriminatory effects) discrimination—“facially neutral [housing] decision[s]” that have “a
disproportionately adverse effect on [a protected class] and [are] otherwise unjustified by a
legitimate rationale.”129 However, the Supreme Court, in the 2005 decision Smith v. City of
Jackson, Mississippi130 (a case involving the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act of
1967 [ADEA]), indirectly called into question past decisions that had held that disparate impact
claims are cognizable (i.e., viable) under the Fair Housing Act.
In Smith, the Court held that the ADEA supports disparate impact claims in part because the law
expressly prohibits actions that “adversely affect” a protected class.131 Due to the absence of
similar statutory language in the Fair Housing Act, various court decisions following Smith raised
questions about whether the act supports disparate impact claims, and if it does, what test courts
should apply to evaluate them.132
The Supreme Court settled some of this uncertainty in a 2015 opinion, holding that disparate
impact claims are cognizable under the Fair Housing Act while providing guidance to HUD and
lower courts regarding how such claims should be assessed.133 During the Obama, Trump, and
126 HUD has interpreted sex-based discrimination to include discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sexual
orientation, in line with the Supreme Court’s decision in Bostock v Clayton Cty., 140 S. Ct. 1731, 1737 (2020) (holding
that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bars workplace discrimination on the basis of sex also forbids
employers from making employment decisions based on an employee’s gender identity or sexual orientation). See
HUD, “Housing Discrimination and Persons Identifying as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and/or
Queer/Questioning (LGBTQ),” https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/
housing_discrimination_and_persons_identifying_lgbt. For additional background on Bostock’s potential application to
the Fair Housing Act, see CRS Report R46832, Potential Application of Bostock v. Clayton County to Other Civil
Rights Statutes.
127 See P.L. 104-76 (authorizing certain housing for older persons); and P.L. 100-430 (adding protections for the
disabled and families with children).
128 Tex. Dep’t of Hous. & Cmty. Affs. v. Inclusive Cmties. Project, 576 U.S. 519, 524 (2015) (internal quotation marks
omitted). See generally, Bank of Am. v. City of Miami, 581 U.S. 189, 194 (2017).
129 Metro. Hous. Dev. Corp. v. Vill. of Arlington Heights, 558 F.2d 1283, 1290 (7th Cir. 1977). There are two types of
disparate impact discrimination: “The first occurs when that decision has a greater adverse impact on one [protected]
group than on another. The second is the effect which the decision has on the community involved; if it perpetuates
segregation and thereby prevents interracial association it will be considered invidious under the Fair Housing Act
independently of the extent to which it produces a disparate effect on different racial groups.” Ibid.
130 544 U.S. 228 (2005).
131 Ibid. at 235-238.
132 See, for example, Am. Ins. Assoc. v. U.S. Dep’t of Hous. & Urban Dev., 74 F. Supp. 3d 30 (D.D.C. 2014)
(interpreting the Fair Housing Act as only prohibiting intentional discrimination, not discriminatory effects, and
vacating HUD’s 2013 rule). The district court’s decision was subsequently vacated and remanded for reconsideration in
accordance with the Supreme Court’s Inclusive Communities ruling. Am. Ins. Assoc. v. U.S. Dep’t of Hous. and Urban
Dev., No. 14-5321 (D.C. Cir. Sept. 23, 2015) (per curiam). The Supreme Court also granted certiorari in two cases to
address the question of whether disparate impact claims were cognizable under the Fair Housing Act, which signaled to
many that the Court was likely to reverse the prevailing understanding that the act bars disparate impact discrimination.
Twp. of Mount Holly v. Mt. Holly Gardens Citizens in Action, Inc., 570 U.S. 904 (2013); and Magner v. Gallagher,
565 U.S. 1013 (2011). Both cases were dismissed before the Court heard any argument. Twp. of Mount Holly v. Mt.
Holly Gardens Citizens in Action, Inc., 571 U.S. 1023 (2013); Magner v. Gallagher, 565 U.S. 1187 (2012). See also
Joshua Thompson and Ralph Kasarda, Symposium: Just give the Court a Chance, SCOTUSblog (January 6, 2015),
https://www.scotusblog.com/2015/01/symposium-just-give-the-court-a-chance/.
133 Tex. Dep’t of Hous. & Cmty Affs. v. Inclusive Cmties. Project, 135 S. Ct. 2507576 U.S. 519, 545 (2015).
Congressional Research Service
31
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Biden Administrations, HUD issued differing regulations to implement disparate impact liability
post-Smith, which sparked litigation.134
In addition to prohibiting discrimination, the Fair Housing Act imposes a broad mandate on HUD
and all other federal “executive departments and agencies [to] administer their programs and
activities relating to housing and urban development ... in a manner affirmatively to further the
purposes of [the Fair Housing Act].”135 This mandate, known as affirmatively furthering fair
housing (AFFH), is not further delineated in the statute, and the Obama, Trump, and Biden
Administrations have implemented the mandate differently.
Disparate Impact Discrimination
Amidst the uncertainty regarding disparate impact discrimination under the Fair Housing Act
following the Supreme Court’s Smith opinion discussed above,136 HUD, for the first time in
February 2013 (during the Obama Administration), issued regulations to “formalize HUD’s longheld interpretation of the availability of ‘discriminatory effects’ liability under the Fair Housing
Act and to provide nationwide consistency in the application of that form of liability.”137 In 2014,
a federal district court briefly vacated the 2013 disparate impact rule after holding that disparate
impact claims are not cognizable under the Fair Housing Act and that HUD had exceeded its
statutory authority in issuing the rule.138 About a year later, a federal appellate court vacated the
district court’s decision and remanded proceedings for reconsideration in accordance with the
Supreme Court’s 2015 decision, Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs v.
Inclusive Communities Project, Inc.139 In Inclusive Communities, the Supreme Court held that
disparate impact claims are cognizable under the Fair Housing Act.140 The Court’s decision did
not expressly adopt the disparate impact test implemented by HUD’s 2013 rule; rather, the Court
adopted a three-step burden-shifting test using language similar, but not identical, to the 2013 rule
and outlined a number of limiting factors that lower courts and HUD should apply when
assessing disparate impact claims.141
In September 2020, near the end of the Trump Administration, HUD issued a final rule intended
“to better reflect the Supreme Court’s 2015 [Inclusive Communities] ruling.”142 The 2020 rule
would have significantly altered the 2013 rule by, among other things, imposing new pleading
requirements on plaintiffs to maintain a prima facie disparate impact claim and establishing new
defenses that a defendant could use to rebut disparate impact claims. Shortly after the rule’s
134 See, for example, Mass. Fair Hous. Ctr. v. U.S. Dep’t of Hous. & Urban Dev., 496 F. Supp. 3d 600, 603 (D. Mass.
2020), government appeal voluntarily dismissed, No 21-1003 (1st Cir. Feb. 18, 2021)); Am. Ins. Assoc. v. U.S. Dep’t of
Hous. & Urban Dev., 74 F. Supp. 3d 30 (D.D.C. 2014), vacated and remanded, No. 14-5321 (D.C. Cir. Sept. 23, 2015)
(per curiam).
135 42 U.S.C. §3608(d).
136 See supra n. 66-67 and surrounding text.
137 HUD, “Implementation of the Fair Housing Act’s Discriminatory Effects Standard,” 78 Federal Register 11460,
February 15, 2013, https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2013/02/15/2013-03375/implementation-of-the-fairhousing-acts-discriminatory-effects-standard.
138 Am. Ins. Assoc., 74 F. Supp. 3d at 32 (interpreting the Fair Housing Act as only prohibiting intentional
discrimination, not discriminatory effects, and vacating HUD’s 2013 rule).
139 Am. Ins. Assoc. v. U.S. Dep’t of Hous. & Urban Dev., No. 14-5321 (D.C. Cir. Sept. 23, 2015) (per curiam).
140 576 U.S. 519 (2015).
141 Ibid. at 531-545.
142 HUD, “Implementation of the Fair Housing Act’s Disparate Impact Standard,” 85 Federal Register 60288,
September 24, 2020, https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/09/24/2020-19887/huds-implementation-of-thefair-housing-acts-disparate-impact-standard.
Congressional Research Service
32
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
issuance, housing advocates filed a lawsuit in federal district court alleging that the 2020 rule
should be set aside because it was an arbitrary and capricious interpretation of the law in violation
of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).143 Before the 2020 rule went into effect, the district
court issued a preliminary injunction enjoining HUD from implementing and enforcing that rule,
which had the effect of keeping the 2013 rule in place.144
The court explained that the 2020 rule constituted a “massive overhaul” of the 2013 rule by
“introducing new, onerous pleading requirements,” “easing the burden on defendants of justifying
a policy with discriminatory effect while at the same time rendering it more difficult for plaintiffs
to rebut that justification,” and “arm[ing] defendants with broad new defenses.”145 In the court’s
view, these alterations “weaken[ed], for housing discrimination victims and fair housing
organizations, disparate impact liability under the Fair Housing Act.”146 HUD argued that these
changes were justified because they brought the rule into alignment with Inclusive Communities
and “provide[d] better clarity to the public.”147 The court concluded that these major changes,
“which r[a]n the risk of neutering disparate impact liability under the Fair Housing Act,
appear[ed] inadequately justified” and “accomplish[ed] the opposite of clarity.”148 Consequently,
the court held that the plaintiffs demonstrated “a substantial likelihood of success on the merits as
to their claim that the 2020 Rule [wa]s arbitrary and capricious under the APA.”149
On January 26, 2021, President Biden issued a memorandum directing HUD to “take all steps
necessary to examine the effects of the [2020 rule].”150 HUD responded to this presidential
directive by voluntarily dismissing its appeal of the federal district court’s injunction151 and
proposing a regulation that would recodify the 2013 rule and effectively rescind the 2020 rule.152
In the proposed rule issued on June 25, 2021, HUD expressed its belief “that the practical effect
of the 2020 Rule’s amendments [wa]s to severely limit HUD’s and plaintiffs’ use of the
discriminatory effects framework in ways that substantially diminish that frameworks’
effectiveness in accomplishing the purposes that Inclusive Communities articulated.”153 HUD
further explained that “the 2013 Rule has provided a workable and balanced framework for
investigating and litigating discriminatory effects claims that is consistent with the Act, HUD’s
own guidance, Inclusive Communities, and other jurisprudence.”154
143 Mass. Fair Hous. Ctr. v. U.S. Dep’t of Hous. & Urban Dev., 496 F. Supp. 3d 600, 603 (D. Mass. 2020).
144 Ibid. at 612.
145 Ibid. at 606-608.
146 Ibid. at 607.
147 Ibid. at 610.
148 Ibid. at 611.
149 Ibid.
150 The White House, “Memorandum on Redressing Our Nation’s and the Federal Government’s History of
Discriminatory Housing Practices and Policies,” January 26, 2021, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/
presidential-actions/2021/01/26/memorandum-on-redressing-our-nations-and-the-federal-governments-history-ofdiscriminatory-housing-practices-and-policies/.
151 Mass. Fair Hous. Ctr. v. U.S. Dep’t of Hous. & Urban Dev., No 21-1003 (1st Cir. Feb. 18, 2021).
152 HUD, “Reinstatement of HUD’s Discriminatory Effects Standard,” 86 Federal Register 33590, June 25, 2021,
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/06/25/2021-13240/reinstatement-of-huds-discriminatory-effectsstandard.
153 Ibid. at 33594.
154 Ibid.
Congressional Research Service
33
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
In March 2023, HUD issued a final rule reinstating the 2013 rule.155
Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing
HUD has applied the AFFH requirement to formula grantees and public housing authorities
(collectively called program participants) first through program guidance and then through
regulations. At the beginning of the 118th Congress, the Biden Administration published a
proposed AFFH rule in the Federal Register.156 Comments on the Biden Administration’s
proposed rule were due April 24, 2023; however, a final rule was not issued.157 The proposed rule
would have replaced an interim final rule that took effect in June 2021 after the Biden
Administration repealed a final rule issued by the Trump Administration.158 The first AFFH rule,
issued by the Obama Administration in 2015,159 had been replaced by the Trump Administration
rule, which became final on September 7, 2020.160
AFFH rules have been controversial, and in past Congresses legislation has been introduced to
curb their application.161 In the 118th Congress, the House Appropriations Committee-passed
version of the FY2024 Departments of Transportation, HUD, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act (H.R. 4820) included a general provision that would have prevented HUD
from using funds from the bill to implement, administer, or enforce the Biden Administration
interim or proposed AFFH rules.162
The meaning of AFFH is not defined in statute, and various court decisions regarding HUD’s
obligations under the mandate have concluded that it means more than refraining from
discrimination.163 A 1987 federal appellate court decision examined the Fair Housing Act’s
legislative history and concluded that the “law’s supporters saw the ending of discrimination as a
155 HUD, “Reinstatement of HUD’s Discriminatory Effects Standard,” 88 Federal Register 19450-19500, March 31,
2023, https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/03/31/2023-05836/reinstatement-of-huds-discriminatoryeffects-standard.
156 HUD, “Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing,” 88 Federal Register 8516, February 9, 2023,
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/02/09/2023-00625/affirmatively-furthering-fair-housing.
157 HUD, “HUD Announces Public Comment Period Extended by 2 Weeks Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing
(AFFH) Proposed Rule,” press release, April 5, 2023, https://www.hud.gov/press/press_releases_media_advisories/
hud_no_23_070.
158 HUD, “Restoring Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing Definitions and Certifications,” 86 Federal Register
30779, 30783, June 10, 2021, https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/06/10/2021-12114/restoringaffirmatively-furthering-fair-housing-definitions-and-certifications.
159 HUD, “Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing,” 80 Federal Register 42353, July 16, 2015,
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2015/07/16/2015-17032/affirmatively-furthering-fair-housing.
160 HUD, “Preserving Community and Neighborhood Choice,” 85 Federal Register 47899, August 7, 2020,
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/08/07/2020-16320/preserving-community-and-neighborhood-choice.
161 For example, in the 114th Congress, the Local Zoning Decisions Protection Act of 2015 (S. 1909) would have
prohibited federal funds from being used to administer, implement, or enforce the AFFH rule (similar versions were
introduced in the 115th Congress). In the 115th Congress, the Restoring Fair Housing Protections Eliminated by HUD
Act of 2018 (H.R. 6220) would have reinstated the Obama Administration AFFH rule. In the 116 th Congress, the
Economic Justice Act (S. 5065) would have repealed the Trump Administration rule.
162 The FY2025 Departments of Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act (H.R. 9028), introduced in the House, contained the same general provision.
163 See, for example, NAACP v. HUD, 817 F.2d 149, 155 (1st Cir. 1987) (“Finally, every court that has considered the
question has held or stated that Title VIII imposes upon HUD an obligation to do more than simply refrain from
discriminating (and from purposefully aiding discrimination by others).”); Nat’l Fair Housing Alliance v. Carson, 330
F. Supp. 3d 14, 25 (D.D.C. 2015) (same).
Congressional Research Service
34
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
means toward truly opening the nation’s housing stock to persons of every race and creed.”164
With that goal in mind, the court stated:
This broader goal suggests an intent that HUD do more than simply not discriminate itself;
it reflects the desire to have HUD use its grant programs to assist in ending discrimination
and segregation, to the point where the supply of genuinely open housing increases. 165
The Biden Administration’s proposed AFFH rule would have applied some aspects of the Obama
Administration rule, but the process was meant to be less onerous for program participants, which
was a criticism of the Obama-era rule.166 The proposed rule would have defined AFFH in a
similar way to the Obama Administration rule.167 Program participants would have identified fair
housing issues in their communities and would then have established fair housing goals to
overcome the issues; submitted an Equity Plan to HUD laying out their analysis, issues, and
goals; and reported annually on progress toward their goals.
For more information, see CRS Report R44557, The Fair Housing Act: HUD Oversight,
Programs, and Activities.
Military Housing
All active-duty military servicemembers are entitled to either government-provided housing or a
housing allowance that they can use to rent or purchase a home in the private housing market.
Servicemembers who are more senior or who have dependents are entitled to larger housing
benefits. In recent years, Congress has taken an interest in reported shortages of both on- and offbase housing in some areas.
In general, there are three primary forms of housing on which the Department of Department
(DOD) relies to provide for U.S.-based servicemembers’ housing entitlement:
•
•
Government Housing: DOD uses military construction funds appropriated by
Congress to build barracks and other housing facilities on military installations.
Government housing is the primary form of housing provided to unaccompanied
servicemembers.168 In many instances, junior enlisted servicemembers who do
not have dependents are required to live in on-base unaccompanied housing for a
certain period of time. Installations provide maintenance services for government
housing, funded through DOD Operation and Maintenance funds.
Privatized Housing: DOD maintains business agreements with private housing
companies to build, restore, maintain, and operate housing on leased military
property.169 Privatized housing is the primary form of family housing on military
bases in the United States, according to the Government Accountability Office.
Currently, about 99% of all family housing on U.S. military installations is
operated under the privatized housing program, formally known as the Military
164 NAACP v. HUD, 817 F.2d at 155.
165 Ibid.
166 88 Federal Register 8517.
167 88 Federal Register 8557.
168 Unaccompanied servicemembers is the term DOD uses to describe servicemembers who are living by themselves
and are not authorized to receive housing to accommodate dependents.
169 Congress authorized these activities under Title 10 U.S. Code, Subtitle A, Part IV, Chapter 169, Subchapter IV,
“Alterative Authority for Acquisition and Improvement of Military Housing,” https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?
path=/prelim@title10/subtitleA/part4/chapter169/subchapter4&edition=prelim.
Congressional Research Service
35
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
•
Housing Privatization Initiative (MHPI).170 There are currently about 211,000
privatized military housing units across all military installations.171 The private
housing companies provide and pay for maintenance at privatized housing
projects.
Off-Base Housing: The majority of servicemembers, about 64%, live outside
military installations, either renting or purchasing homes in the private sector
housing markets located in areas near the installations. For these
servicemembers, DOD provides a Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH), which is
a tax-free allowance intended to cover most of the servicemembers’ housing
costs.172 Maintenance is provided by either a private landlord (in rental homes) or
the servicemember (if he or she is the homeowner).
It is DOD’s policy to “rely on the private sector as the primary source of housing for
accompanied and unaccompanied personnel normally eligible to draw a housing allowance.”173
One advantage to this policy is that it enables DOD in some situations to transfer large groups of
servicemembers from one base to another or make other changes that affect the population of
military installations without resulting in immediate excesses or shortages of housing
infrastructure.
Basic Allowance for Housing
DOD provides a BAH for servicemembers who do not live in military-provided housing on a
military installation. The BAH rates vary depending on location and are intended to align with the
cost of the local rental housing markets for those servicemembers to obtain housing from the
private market. About 58% of servicemembers receive a housing allowance to rent or buy a home
off base.174
To calculate local BAH rates, the uniformed services have concurred in aggregating individual
zip codes into groups called Military Housing Areas (MHAs). There are approximately 300
MHAs in the United States.175 DOD collects data for each of these housing markets and the rental
costs associated with various types of housing, including apartments, townhouses/duplexes, and
170 GAO, Military Housing: DOD Can Further Strengthen Oversight of Its Privatized Housing Program, GAO-23-
105377, April 2023, p. 1, https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-23-105377.pdf.
171 While most privatized housing is for family housing units, DOD does operate seven MHPI projects for
unaccompanied housing. The Army maintains privatized housing projects for unaccompanied personnel at five
locations: Fort Irwin, CA; Fort Drum, NY; Fort Liberty (formerly Fort Bragg), NC; Fort Stewart, GA; and Fort Meade,
MD. The Navy maintains privatized housing projects for unaccompanied personnel at two locations: Naval Station
Norfolk, VA; and Naval Station San Diego, CA. See GAO, Military Housing: Information on the Privatization of
Unaccompanied Personnel Housing, GAO-14-313, March 2014, https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-14-313.pdf. For the
total number of privatized housing units, see DOD, Office of Inspector General, Audit of Medical Conditions of
Residents in Privatized Military Housing, DODIG-2022-078, December 2022, p. 1, https://media.defense.gov/2022/
Dec/12/2003130831/-1/-1/1/DODIG-2022-078.PDF.
172 DOD provides BAH to servicemembers at locations in the United States. While family housing in the United States
is usually provided in the form of privatized housing, family housing overseas is government-owned. Some
servicemembers stationed overseas are permitted to live off-base; their housing costs are covered by the Overseas
Housing Allowance (OHA) program.
173 Department of Defense Manual 4165.63, p. 1, https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodm/
416563m.pdf?ver=2018-09-20-075812-223.
174 Housing data for military populations were provided by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for
Legislative Affairs to CRS, August 28, 2023, on file with author.
175 BAH Data Collection, Defense Travel Management Office, https://www.travel.dod.mil/Allowances/BasicAllowance-for-Housing/BAH-Data-Collection/.
Congressional Research Service
36
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
single-family rental units with varying numbers of bedrooms. The different types of units are
referred to as housing profiles and their rental costs are then linked with particular pay grades.176
More than 98% of servicemembers assigned to military duty stations in the continental United
States are in one of the MHAs.177
DOD, with input from Congress, sets policy for the BAH. The BAH policy typically sets BAH
rates as a percentage of estimated housing costs. This policy has varied over the years. In the
1990s, the BAH was calculated and intended to cover about 80% of estimated average housing
costs.178 In the early 2000s, the policy called for the BAH to increase to cover 100% of estimated
housing costs.179 The current policy, in effect since FY2019, provides servicemembers with a
BAH that intends to cover 95% of estimated housing costs.
Housing Shortages
At certain military installations at certain times, servicemembers face long waitlists to obtain onbase housing.180 News reports have spotlighted the shortage in places like Las Vegas, NV, where
some junior servicemembers were ordered to move off-base due to a shortage of on-base
housing.181 Some of those servicemembers faced financial hardships when forced to sign a
lease—requiring a security deposit and first-month’s rent—before they began receiving a BAH.
In 2020, Congress revised statutes to allow DOD to provide a dislocation allowance to help those
servicemembers cover such costs.182
Numerous news reports have also spotlighted the challenges servicemembers can face in search
of affordable housing, especially in high-priced coastal real estate markets.183 In September 2022,
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin acknowledged that there are housing concerns. He announced
176 Basic Allowance for Housing Rate Lookup, Defense Travel Management Office, https://www.travel.dod.mil/
Allowances/Basic-Allowance-for-Housing/BAH-Rate-Lookup/.
177
For more information, see GAO, Military Housing: Actions Needed to Improve the Process for Setting Allowances
for Servicemembers and Calculating Payments for Privatized Housing Projects, GAO-21-137, January 2021,
https://www.gao.gov/assets/720/711967.pdf.
178 See prepared statement of Paul Johnson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations and Housing,
contained in S.Hrg. 105-605, Part 3, p. 484.
179 Congress removed the expectation that servicemembers would contribute to their housing costs in Section 605 of the
FY2001 National Defense Authorization Act (P.L. 106-398), which changed the statute to authorize the Secretary of
Defense to provide a BAH that was equal to the cost of adequate housing for civilians with comparable income levels
in the same area. After a transition period, average out-of-pocket housing expenses were officially eliminated as of
January 1, 2005.
180 See, for example, Marine Corps Camp Lejeune Family Housing, accessed February 2023, showing wait times
ranging from one to sixteen months for various housing complexes, at https://www.lejeune.marines.mil/offices-staff/
family-housing-division/wait-times/.
181 Humberto Sanchez, “Defense Department to pay single junior service members dislocation housing funds,” The
Nevada Independent, May 23, 2022, https://thenevadaindependent.com/article/defense-department-to-pay-singlejunior-service-members-dislocation-housing-funds. Also see Greg Hadley, “‘Not a Good Situation’: Off-Base Housing
Crisis Has USAF Scrambling,” Air and Space Force Times, July 9, 2021, https://www.airandspaceforces.com/not-agood-situation-off-base-housing-crisis-has-usaf-scrambling/.
182 See the FY2020 National Defense Authorization Act (P.L. 116-92, §607). The provision extended dislocation
allowance (DLA) to servicemembers without dependents and allowed DOD to issue a partial DLA when installations
order servicemembers to vacate on-base housing. DOD exercised that authority and expanded DLA in May 2022. See
Karen Jowers, “New allowance greenlit for troops ordered to move from barracks to off-base housing,” Military Times,
May 23, 2022, https://www.militarytimes.com/pay-benefits/2022/05/23/new-allowance-greenlit-for-troops-ordered-tomove-from-barracks-to-off-base-housing/.
183 See, for example, R. J. Rico, “Military families’ housing benefits lag as rents explode,” The Associated Press,
August 21, 2022, https://www.militarytimes.com/pay-benefits/2022/08/21/military-families-housing-benefits-lag-asrents-explode/.
Congressional Research Service
37
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
automatic increases in the BAH for servicemembers in 28 MHAs that experienced an average of
more than 20% spikes in rental housing costs above the 2022 BAH rates.184
To ensure better visibility on potential housing shortages in military communities, the FY2023
National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA, P.L. 117-263) in the 117th Congress contained a
provision that requires the military departments to conduct Housing Requirements and Market
Analysis (HRMA) for each installation under their jurisdiction every five years.185 The HRMA is
a detailed study of housing demand and supply within a defined market area. These analyses help
identify affordable housing shortages and support decisionmaking about how to best meet the
needs of servicemembers and their families. Prior to the FY2023 NDAA, the frequency of
HRMAs was dictated only by DOD policy.
The 118th Congress took an interest in military housing. For example, in the FY2024 NDAA,
Congress enacted a slate of legislative reforms intended to improve the quality of unaccompanied
housing on military bases.186
For more information on military housing, see CRS Report R47728, Military Housing.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Loan Level Price Adjustments
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are two government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) chartered by
Congress to provide liquidity for the single-family and multifamily mortgage markets. After
purchasing mortgages from originators, the GSEs guarantee the default risk associated with the
mortgages. In the years following the housing and mortgage market turmoil that began around
2007, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac experienced financial difficulty, and their regulator, the
Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), took control of them from their stockholders and
management in a process known as conservatorship. Although their financial condition has
improved since that time, and they are now being allowed to accumulate capital reserves to hold
against mortgage default risks,187 Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac remain in federal conservatorship.
In addition to base guarantee fees that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac charge for guaranteeing
mortgage default risks on their purchased mortgages, they also charge additional upfront fees,
known as loan-level price adjustments (LLPAs),188 for single-family mortgages. The amount of
the LLPAs varies based on the characteristics of the mortgage. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
publish matrices showing the LLPAs, which depend on features such as a borrower’s credit score,
the loan-to-value ratio, and other factors relating to certain types of mortgages or property types.
In January 2023, FHFA directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to implement changes to the
LLPAs. Following concerns regarding the policy objective for the new fee structure, the FHFA
Director stated that the changes “will strengthen the safety and soundness of the Enterprises by
enhancing their ability to improve their capital position over time” as well as facilitate “equitable
184 DOD, “DoD Announces Immediate and Long-Term Actions to Help Strengthen the Economic Security and Stability
of Service Members and Their Families,” press release, September 22, 2022, https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/
Release/Article/3167769/dod-announces-immediate-and-long-term-actions-to-help-strengthen-the-economic-s/.
185 See 10 U.S.C. §2821.
186 For more information, see CRS Insight IN12229, FY2024 NDAA: Military Construction and Housing
Authorizations.
187 See FHFA, Senior Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements, https://www.fhfa.gov/Conservatorship/Pages/SeniorPreferred-Stock-Purchase-Agreements.aspx.
188 While these fees are often collectively referred to as loan-level price adjustments, technically, loan-level price
adjustments is the term Fannie Mae uses for these upfront guarantee fees, while Freddie Mac refers to them as credit
fees.
Congressional Research Service
38
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
and sustainable access to homeownership.”189 Under the new fee structure (as under the old fee
structure), borrowers with low default risk generally pay less than those with high default risk.
When comparing the new and old fee structures, some low default risk borrowers may pay more
under the new fee structure than they would have under the previous LLPA fee structure, and
some higher default risk borrowers may pay less under the new fee structure than they would
have under the previous fee structure.190 Most of the LLPA changes went into effect on May 1,
2023, although one particular fee, based on debt-to-income ratios, was initially delayed and later
rescinded.191
FHFA’s LLPA pricing directive could arguably serve multiple policy objectives. For example,
low-risk borrowers, who tend to have high credit scores, may subsidize some of the costs to
insure against the default risk of borrowers with low credit scores, which may be one policy
objective. In addition, a larger share of revenues collected from low-risk borrowers may expedite
the GSEs’ ability to accumulate more retained earnings necessary to exit conservatorship, thus
serving a different policy objective. Also, charging high-risk borrowers slightly lower premiums
could potentially increase affordability and promote more stable payment behavior from this
group, possibly increasing the amount of revenues that could also facilitate earlier exit from
conservatorship. Given that fewer high-risk borrowers may qualify for as many or for mortgages
as large as those obtained by low-risk borrowers, more of the revenues collected under the new
LLPA schedule are likely to be applied toward improving the financial conditions of Fannie Mae
and Freddie Mac.
The new fees went into effect on May 1, 2023. The Middle Class Borrower Protection Act of
2023 (H.R. 3564), passed by the House in June 2023, would have required the FHFA Director to
revert to the prior fee structure and would have placed certain restrictions on future fee changes.
That bill was not enacted. Also in May 2023, FHFA released a Request for Input (RFI) on Fannie
Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s pricing framework for single-family mortgages.192 In addition, the
House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance held a hearing
on the pricing changes,193 and the full Financial Services Committee held a hearing on FHFA
oversight shortly thereafter.194
For more information, see the following:
189 FHFA, “FHFA Announces Updates to the Enterprises’ Single-Family Pricing Framework,” press release, January
19, 2023, https://www.fhfa.gov/Media/PublicAffairs/Pages/FHFA-Announces-Updates-to-Enterprises-SF-PricingFramework.aspx.
190 See Fannie Mae’s LLPA matrix incorporating the changes announced in January at
https://singlefamily.fanniemae.com/media/9391/display.
191 FHFA, “FHFA Director Sandra L. Thompson’s Statement on Upfront Fees Based on Certain Borrowers’ Debt-toIncome (DTI) Ratio,” press release, March 15, 2023, https://www.fhfa.gov/Media/PublicAffairs/Pages/Statement-fromFHFA-Director-Sandra-Thompson-on-Upfront-Fees-Based-on-Certain-Borrowers-DTI-Ratio.aspx; and FHFA, “FHFA
Announces Rescission of Enterprise Upfront Fees Based on Debt-To-Income (DTI) Ratio,” press release, May 10,
2023, https://www.fhfa.gov/Media/PublicAffairs/Pages/FHFA-Announces-Rescission-of-Enterprise-Upfront-FeesBased-on-Debt-To-Income-Ratio.aspx.
192 FHFA, “FHFA Requests Input on the Enterprises’ Single-Family Pricing Framework,” press release, May 15, 2023,
https://www.fhfa.gov/Media/PublicAffairs/Pages/FHFA-Requests-Input-on-the-Enterprises-Single-Family-PricingFramework.aspx.
193 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Financial Services, Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance, The Current
Mortgage Market: Undermining Housing Affordability with Politics, hearing, 118th Cong., 1st sess., May 17, 2023,
https://financialservices.house.gov/calendar/eventsingle.aspx?EventID=408776.
194 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Financial Services, FHFA Oversight: Protecting Homeowners and Taxpayers,
hearing, 118th Cong., 1st sess., May 23, 2023, https://financialservices.house.gov/calendar/eventsingle.aspx?EventID=
408797.
Congressional Research Service
39
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
•
•
•
CRS Insight IN12151, Recent Mortgage Pricing Directive for Fannie Mae and
Freddie Mac
CRS Report R44525, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in Conservatorship:
Frequently Asked Questions
CRS Report R46746, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: Recent Administrative
Developments
Energy Standards for Manufactured Housing
Manufactured housing is a type of factory-built housing that is built on a permanent chassis and
transported to a home site for installation. Unlike site-built housing and other types of factorybuilt housing (e.g., modular homes), which are subject to state and local building codes,
manufactured housing is built in accordance with HUD’s Manufactured Housing Construction
and Safety Standards.195 In general, manufactured homes tend to be more affordable than
traditional site-built homes.196
Section 413 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA, P.L. 110-140) directed
the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish energy conservation standards for manufactured
housing. Among other requirements, EISA directed DOE to base the standards on the most recent
version of the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) unless the Secretary finds that the
IECC is not cost-effective or that a more stringent standard would be more cost-effective. EISA
also directed DOE to establish the standards after providing notice and opportunity for comment
from manufacturers and other interested parties and after consultation with the Secretary of HUD,
who the law specified may seek further counsel from the Manufactured Housing Consensus
Committee.197
DOE published a final rule establishing energy standards for manufactured housing in May
2022.198 It addresses certain aspects of manufactured homes that pertain to building thermal
performance and mechanical systems, based on the 2021 IECC.199 The rule adopts a tiered
standard that applies somewhat different requirements to single-section and multi-section
manufactured homes,200 specifically with regard to the building thermal envelope requirements.
DOE stated that it adopted this tiered standard in response to concerns raised by stakeholders,
including HUD, about the potential impact on the affordability of manufactured homes.201 Being
smaller, single-section homes generally have lower purchase prices than multi-section homes, and
195 42 U.S.C. §5401 et seq. and 24 C.F.R. Part 3280. For more information, see HUD’s website at
https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/housing/rmra/mhs/csp.
196 See, for example, Chadwick Reed, Comparing the Costs of Manufactured and Site-Built Housing, Joint Center for
Housing Studies of Harvard University, blog post, July 10, 2023, https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/blog/comparing-costsmanufactured-and-site-built-housing.
197 The Manufactured Housing Consensus Committee is an advisory committee established by statute that provides
recommendations to HUD on revisions to the Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards. For more
information, see HUD’s website at https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/housing/rmra/mhs/cc1.
198 Department of Energy (DOE), “Energy Conservation Program: Energy Conservation Standards for Manufactured
Housing,” 87 Federal Register 32728-32824, May 31, 2022, https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2022/05/31/
2022-10926/energy-conservation-program-energy-conservation-standards-for-manufactured-housing.
199 87 Federal Register 32730.
200 Manufactured homes can be built in one or more sections that are attached at the home site. A manufactured home
that consists of one section is a single-section home; a manufactured home that consists of two or more sections is a
multi-section home.
201 See the final rule at 87 Federal Register 32745-32746.
Congressional Research Service
40
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
the rule applies lower stringencies to the building thermal envelope requirements for singlesection homes in order to limit cost increases for such homes.
The rule was initially scheduled to go into effect on May 31, 2023. However, in May 2023, DOE
issued a final rule202 delaying compliance until July 1, 2025 for multi-section manufactured
homes and until 60 days after the issuance of enforcement procedures for single-section
manufactured homes. DOE published a notice of proposed rulemaking to establish enforcement
procedures in December 2023.203 According to the notice, DOE proposes to determine
compliance by reviewing certain manufacturer records rather than through testing or
manufacturer certification requirements,204 and it “tentatively concludes” that compliance costs
for manufacturers will be minimal.205
Some stakeholders have questioned whether DOE should have pursued more energy efficiency
for single-section manufactured homes.206 Others have argued that the final rule will make
manufactured housing less affordable for many consumers and that HUD, as the agency
responsible for the Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards, should have final
authority over the adoption of any standards related to manufactured housing.207 Multiple bills
introduced in the 118th Congress addressed the DOE energy standards for manufactured housing,
including the following, though none of these provisions was enacted:
•
•
•
The Affordable HOMES Act (H.R. 6421) would have eliminated the DOE
standards, striking the provision of EISA that required DOE to implement these
standards and providing that the final rule shall have no force or effect. The bill
was reported by the House Energy and Commerce Committee in March 2024.
The Manufactured Housing Affordability and Energy Efficiency Act of 2023
(H.R. 3327) would have provided that the DOE standards would only become
effective and enforceable if HUD adopted them into the Manufactured Housing
Construction and Safety Standards.
The House-passed FY2024 DOE appropriations bill (H.R. 4394) included a
provision that would have prohibited funds provided by the act from being used
to carry out the final rule.208
202 DOE, “Energy Conservation Program: Energy Conservation Standards for Manufactured Housing; Extension of
Compliance Date,” 88 Federal Register 34411-34419, May 30, 2023, https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/
05/30/2023-11043/energy-conservation-program-energy-conservation-standards-for-manufactured-housing-extensionof.
203 Department of Energy, “Energy Conservation Program: Energy Conservation Standards for Manufactured Housing;
Enforcement,” 88 Federal Register 88844-88854, December 26, 2023, https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/
2023/12/26/2023-27182/energy-conservation-program-energy-conservation-standards-for-manufactured-housingenforcement.
204 88 Federal Register 88846.
205 88 Federal Register 88848-88849.
206 For example, see American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), “Biden Standard for Manufactured
Homes Will Leave Low-Income Households with High Energy Bills,” press release, May 18, 2022,
https://www.aceee.org/press-release/2022/05/biden-standard-manufactured-homes-will-leave-low-income-householdshigh.
207 For example, see the written testimony of Bill Boor, CEO of Cavco Industries, Inc., on behalf of the Manufactured
Housing Institute, at a July 14, 2023 House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance Hearing on
“How Mandates Like ESG Distort Markets and Drive Up Costs for Insurance and Housing,” https://docs.house.gov/
meetings/BA/BA04/20230714/116212/HHRG-118-BA04-Wstate-BoorB-20230714.pdf.
208 Section 622 of H.R. 4394.
Congressional Research Service
41
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
Housing and Disaster Response and Recovery
The extent to which federal policies adequately and effectively address the housing needs of
disaster survivors is of ongoing interest to policymakers. In the 118th Congress, concerns and
questions arose regarding individual compensation for disaster-caused decreases in property value
(even when a person’s residence was not directly damaged or destroyed), options for simplifying
the application process for disaster assistance, and considerations for addressing unmet needs. In
addition, the location and frequency of natural disasters may be affecting the housing market,
with the threat of natural disasters to housing stock increasing in recent years.209 Nearly one-third
of the U.S. housing stock—about 35 million homes—is considered to be at high risk of damage
from a natural disaster.210
When disasters occur, the President may authorize an emergency or major disaster declaration
under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Stafford Act; P.L. 93288, as amended). The declaration can authorize the Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA) to provide short- and intermediate-term housing assistance for disaster survivors through
the Individuals and Households Program (IHP).211
In addition to disaster relief provided by FEMA, Congress may make supplemental
appropriations of Community Development Block Grants for Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR),
allowing HUD to administer grants to states, localities, and insular areas for long-term recovery
needs, including those of disaster survivors.
There are also some disaster assistance programs that may be available to individuals regardless
of whether there is a declared disaster or congressional appropriation—for example, funding
provided through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and some FEMA Hazard
Mitigation Assistance programs.212
The following sections provide brief overviews and selected considerations related to housing
assistance provided through FEMA’s IHP and HUD’s CDBG-DR program, including the
interaction of these programs. There is also discussion of the role of flood insurance. The final
section provides an overview of how the changing climate may affect housing.
FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program (IHP) and HUD’s Community
Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR)
FEMA may assist individuals with their recovery from disasters when the President authorizes the
Individual Assistance (IA) program pursuant to a Stafford Act declaration of emergency or major
disaster. The IHP is the form of IA through which FEMA may provide temporary financial and/or
209 Howard Kunreuther, “Reducing losses from catastrophes: role of insurance and other policy tools,” Environment:
Science and Policy for Sustainable Development, vol. 58, no. 1 (January/February 2016), pp. 30-37.
210 CoreLogic, “Risk Redefined: CoreLogic Climate Change Catastrophe Report Emphasizes Need to Address
Increasing Frequency of Hazard Events,” January 27, 2021, https://www.corelogic.com/press-releases/risk-redefinedcorelogic-climate-change-catastrophe-report-emphasizes-need-to-address-increasing-frequency-of-hazard-events/.
211 42 U.S.C. §5174. See also 44 C.F.R. §206.110(a), and FEMA, Individual Assistance Program and Policy Guide
(IAPPG), FP 104-009-03, v. 1.1, May 2021, pp. 6, 41, https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/fema_iappg1.1.pdf (hereinafter, “FEMA, IAPPG”). For information on other forms of federal disaster relief, see CRS Report
WMR10001, CRS Guide to Federal Emergency Management.
212 Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC), the Flood Mitigation Assistance Grant Program (FMA),
and the Safeguarding Tomorrow Revolving Loan Fund Program (STRLF). For additional information, see CRS Report
R46989, FEMA Hazard Mitigation: A First Step Toward Climate Adaptation.
Congressional Research Service
42
Housing Issues in the 118th Congress
direct assistance for housing (referred to as Housing Assistance).213 Examples of financial
Housing Assistance include Rental Assistance and Home Repair Assistance, and examples of
direct assistance include temporarily providing a person with a Manufactured Housing Unit or
Direct Lease Assistance.
Despite the range of existing IHP financial and direct assistance options, concerns have arisen
related to the IHP’s ability to meet the needs of disaster survivors.214 Because the program is
generally authorized to address uninsured or underinsured damages caused by an emergency or
major disaster, IHP housing assistance is structured to address survivors’ disaster-caused housing
needs when they are displaced or their homes are rendered uninhabitable. Moreover, FEMA does
not have the statutory authority to provide temporary rental or mortgage payments when people
experience disaster-caused financial hardship.215 As an additional example, the IHP cannot
compensate disaster survivors for all losses (e.g., it does not compensate disaster survivors for
loss of property value resulting from disasters).216
Congress has also provided supplemental funding for long-term disaster recovery and other
related purposes for selected incidents under the statutory authority of HUD’s conventional
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program—a usage commonly referred to as
CDBG-DR.217 Typically, CDBG-DR funds are directed to jurisdictions with the most impacted
and distressed areas that have federal emergency or disaster declarations under the Stafford
Act.218 To that end, CDBG-
This text is long and has been trimmed here. Open the source document for the complete record.
This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.