NHC joins major housing groups to call for end to GSE conservatorship

A coalition of 30 major housing organizations released a letter calling for an end to conservatorship combined with legislation that locks in recent reforms for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two government sponsored enterprises (GSEs) that have been under government control for 10 years this month.The statement, which NHC helped draft, urged policy makers to “protect taxpayers, provide liquidity and promote stability while taking care not to roll back aspects of the GSEs’ operations that are supporting the foundation of the housing market.” The statement was signed by a broad range of organizations including the National Housing Conference, the Mortgage Bankers Association, the National Association of REALTORS®, the National Association of Home Builders, LISC, Enterprise Community Partners and the Center for Responsible Lending, among others. It makes clear that any effort to change the existing role of the GSEs “must also include enforceable mechanisms to serve the entire market of renters and qualified homebuyers, including underserved markets and manufactured housing.” Copies of the statement were sent to the White House, the Office of Management and Budget, the Treasury Department, the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the bipartisan leadership of Congress as well as the leaders of the Senate Banking Committee and the House Financial Services Committee.

Shutdown countdown begins

Funding for the federal government is set to expire on Sept. 30, and all eyes are on the House and President Trump to avert a government shutdown during a midterm election. The House has just 10 legislative days to pass bills to fund the government, which must then be signed by President Trump. The Senate has passed three funding bills ( H.R 5895, H.R. 6147 and H.R. 6157), which fund nine of the 12 appropriations subcommittees. The holdouts are Commerce-Justice- Science, Homeland Security and State-Foreign Operations. Funding for the Homeland Security bill could prove politically tricky since that’s where President Trump’s proposed border wall would be funded. Much more on a potential shutdown in this Politico article. 

Federal Financing Bank Multifamily Risk Sharing Program could end Oct. 1

In FY 2014, HUD and the Federal Financing Bank (FFB) launched the risk sharing initiative to provide financing for multifamily mortgage loans insured by FHA under its Risk Sharing programs on an interim basis until Sept. 30, 2020. But President Trump’s FY 2019 budget called for the program’s elimination at the end of FY 2018. Thirty-seven state and local housing finance agencies have participated in Risk Sharing (including 14 with FFB) and others have expressed interest. The program is particularly effective at financing smaller rural multifamily projects.

It’s not clear why the Office of Management and Budget decided to terminate FFB funding for Risk Sharing loans, as it makes money for the federal government and has 50 percent lender participation. One concern may be purely ideological – that FFB is federal funding, potentially displacing the private capital market. But private capital markets are not being displaced and without the program, many smaller rural deals will not be funded at all. NHC has joined other proponents of the FFB Multifamily Risk Sharing Program to seek a reversal of this decision by the White House.

HFS hearings on multifamily development and GSE reform

Today, the Housing and Insurance subcommittee of the House Financial Services (HFS) committee held a hearing entitled “ The Cost of Regulation on Affordable Multifamily Development.” The hearing took place in the Rayburn House Office Building, room 2128, and via webcast. Witnesses included:

Tomorrow at 10 a.m. EDT the full HFS committee will hold a hearing entitled “ A Failure to Act: How a Decade without GSE Reform Has Once Again Put Taxpayers at Risk.” The hearing will take place in the Rayburn House Office Building, room 2128, and via webcast. Witnesses will include:

HUD's new Landlord Task Force

HUD Sec. Ben Carson has established a new Landlord Task Force, part of a campaign to improve landlord participation in the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program. HUD created the task force in response to the findings of two new studies on HCV, the nation’s largest rental subsidy program. The first study, sponsored by HUD and conducted by the Urban Institute, found that voucher recipients have difficulty finding landlords who accept their vouchers, especially in higher-opportunity neighborhoods. The second study, conducted through Johns Hopkins University, found that landlords are most commonly frustrated by required HCV inspections and by how housing authorities handle tenant disputes. These studies will be presented at landlord forums across the nation as part of the HUD landlord engagement campaign. The task force will then provide Sec. Carson with policy recommendations for increasing landlord HCV participation.

GSE to shut down single-family rental pilots

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) recently announced that both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will shut down their single-family rental pilot programs, effectively ending their participation in the single-family rental market. In the last year, the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) expanded into the single-family rental market to measure support for growing the market. Some market participants opposed the expansion, citing concerns that such moves would affect affordability for low-income homebuyers. FHFA has recognized that the market does not require the GSEs and now notes the need for a more expansive understanding of the potential impact of GSE expansion into the single-family rental market on such issues as homeownership and long-term affordability.

Fact sheet: Cutting housing assistance negatively impacts women

A joint fact sheet from the National Low Income Housing Coalition and the National Women’s Law Center expounds on the ways in which cutting federal housing assistance negatively impacts women and families. Female householders are significantly more likely to live in HUD-assisted public housing and use housing vouchers than their male counterparts. Moreover, the report points to the positive impact of housing assistance for women of color, domestic violence survivors, LGBTQ women, families experiencing homelessness, children and women with disabilities. Cuts to housing assistance in the FY 2019 budget would cause significant challenges for women and families, such as rising rents, difficulty paying for basic necessities and discrimination and harassment in the low-wage job sector.

New reporting on Area Agencies on Aging

The National Association for Area Agencies on Aging has released two new reports on challenges and demographic changes in their communities. The first report examines how housing and homelessness are impacting older adult communities around Area Agencies on Aging (AAA) and the innovative partnerships that allow AAAs to effectively and efficiently respond to community needs. The second report compiles and reviews challenges AAAs in rural communities face, such as smaller budgets and fewer staff as compared to non-rural AAAs. The two reports highlight creative approaches to allowing older adults to age in their own homes and communities.

FEMA's Transitional Sheltering Assistance to end this month

A recent ruling from District Judge Timothy Hillman ending FEMA’s Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA) program, which has been responsible for providing temporary housing for hundreds of Puerto Ricans in the wake of Hurricane Maria. A class action lawsuit brought on by LatinoJustice PRLDEF prolonged the end of TSA several times through a restraining order, which Hillman extended in August. Hillman’s most recent order denies the request for a preliminary injunction, citing multiple legal constraints. Puerto Ricans living on the U.S. mainland through TSA must now find alternative housing by Sept. 13, when the TSA program is set to terminate.