NCSHA Washington Report | November 21, 2025

One indicator that an idea is gaining real traction in politics is when people who agree with its fundamental premise start to attack it. That’s what’s been happening to the notion that the places where people want to live should make it easier to supply more housing for them, which has moved from an arcane academic interest of free-market economists not so long ago to a mainstream, popular concept some say drives a national movement: the YIMBYs

Upscale big-city renters, old school business groups, conservative pundits, progressive activists, housing supply-siders, and state and local elected officials across the political spectrum are all among the adherents of YIMBY “market-based solutions to the housing crisis,” like less restrictive zoning, faster construction approvals, and more permissive mixed-use development policy. Some tie their views to the broader “abundance” agenda, which advocates fewer barriers to infrastructure and renewable energy as well as housing.

The loudest dissenters, perhaps surprisingly, tend to be progressive voices, including many who favor more housing, especially for lower-income people. They contrast YIMBYism’s focus on regulatory relief with needs for “anti-monopoly policies, stronger union power, expanded social welfare programs, stricter environmental regulations, and increased local community input … and sometimes reject the abundance vision for failing to address how inequitable political power leads to inequality in economic outcomes.”

Others say simply that, “however promising the YIMBY moment and its solutions are, it ultimately falls short of what we need to fix the affordable housing crisis.”

But even if YIMBY measures alone don’t constitute a complete platform, there’s no reason they can’t complement policies that create incentives for construction of homes that will remain out of reach for many even if and when bureaucratic roadblocks are lifted. In a new paper for the Urban Institute, Daniel Hornung and Aaron Shroyer call for an “abundance plus affordability strategy” that adds state and local tax abatements, low-cost financing, and public land disposition for construction to the menu.

That’s happening already in red and blue states, with their housing finance agencies at the center of the solutions. State-level action, in fact, is where many YIMBY leaders see the best opportunities to build on their recent momentum.

The both-and approach is also reflected in national legislation, such as the ROAD to Housing Act that passed the Senate recently, which would push local jurisdictions to support more building, offer technical support to those that need some help, and provide new funding to places that pick up the pace.

Any community as diverse, and occasionally rambunctious, as the YIMBYs will have internal disagreements. Participants in a recent national conference openly acknowledged “a real gap between the housing stock sought by conservatives and progressives.” That’s not necessarily a bad thing. As a Republican state legislator from Texas told a reporter last year, “Some issues become a horseshoe. We have different views of government but sometimes we arrive at the same conclusion.”

The YIMBYs have brought sides that usually sit apart to the same table. That’s making a difference and something to be thankful for.

Stockton Williams | Executive Director

Washington Report will return December 5.

In This Issue

• Senate Banking Committee Advances Nominees to Lead FHA, Ginnie Mae
• DHS Proposes to Include Housing Programs Under Public Charge Rule
• Flood, Cleaver Hold Press Conference to Press for Passage of HOME Reform Act
• Trump Nominates CFPB Director to Allow OMB More Time to Control Agency
• CFPB Proposes to Change Fair Lending Rules
• CohnReznick Report Confirms Continued Strong Housing Credit Portfolio Performance
• NCSHA in the News
• Looking Ahead

Senate Banking Committee Advances Nominees to Lead FHA, Ginnie Mae
The Senate Banking Committee Wednesday voted to favorably report the nominations of Frank Cassidy as Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Commissioner and Assistant Secretary of Housing at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Joseph Gormley to serve as President of Ginnie Mae. Gormley was approved by a straight party-line vote, with all Republicans voting in support and all Democrats opposed. Similarly, Cassidy received support from all Republicans and was opposed by each Democrat except for Senator Mark Warner of Virginia. In his opening statement, Committee Chair Tim Scott (R-SC) argued Gormley and Cassidy “will help ensure that housing finance remains accessible and sustainable” and expand homeownership opportunities. Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) did not address either Cassidy or Gormley in her remarks but in the past has raised concerns about their actions in their current roles at HUD and Ginnie Mae.

The committee also advanced the nominations of Travis Hill to serve as Chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and Paul Hollis to serve as Director of the U.S. Mint.

It is not yet known when the full Senate will consider Cassidy’s or Gormley’s nomination. Both are likely to be voted on as part of a larger package of nominees.

DHS Proposes to Include Housing Programs Under Public Charge Rule
The Department of Homeland Security published a proposed rule on Thursday that would revise the so-called public charge rule to expand the scope of public benefits immigration officers may consider in determining an applicant’s eligibility for enhanced immigration status. Under a Biden-era version of the rule, which had codified longstanding practice, immigration officials evaluating an application for lawful entry or permanent residence in the United States would not consider the use of certain public benefits, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or various housing assistance programs, in determining whether the applicant would likely be reliant primarily on public resources. The proposed rule, if finalized, would rescind those exceptions, effectively granting immigration officers the discretion to consider an applicant’s use of public benefits, including housing programs such as public housing, Housing Choice Vouchers, or Project-Based Rental Assistance, in determining eligibility for a green card or other enhanced immigration status, in effect strongly discouraging individuals who might wish to obtain permanent residence in the future from using these resources.

Flood, Cleaver Hold Press Conference to Press for Passage of HOME Reform Act
On Thursday, House Financial Services Committee Housing and Insurance Subcommittee Chairman Mike Flood (R-NE) and Ranking Member Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO) held a press conference outside the Capitol to promote their recent introduction of the HOME Reform Act of 2025, which would make a number of significant statutory updates to the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, and to press their colleagues in both the House and Senate to take up and pass the legislation. This comes after the Senate’s larger housing package, the ROAD to Housing Act, which includes a different set of changes to the HOME program, passed the full Senate as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Flood and Cleaver hope to see their HOME legislation included in a final NDAA bill to be enacted into law, as House and Senate negotiators are discussing now what housing provisions to include as part of the NDAA.

Trump Nominates CFPB Director to Allow OMB More Time to Control Agency
President Trump on Tuesday nominated Stuart Levenbach, a senior Office of Management and Budget (OMB) official overseeing natural resources and energy issues, to serve as the next Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The Senate is unlikely to consider the nomination as the administration has said the president nominated Levenbach as a technical maneuver to extend the amount of time OMB Director Russell Vought can serve as acting head of CFPB without needing Senate confirmation for the position. Vought has led CFPB in an acting capacity since February, during which time he has acted to mostly wind down the CFPB’s operations. Under the Federal Vacancies Act, Vought’s ability to continue leading CFPB is set to expire soon but will now be extended because of Levenbach’s nomination. In a court filing last week, the Trump Administration said the CFPB would run out of money to operate at the beginning of 2026 and argued it is legally prohibited from seeking an infusion of funding from the Federal Reserve, which has been funding it. If the CFPB runs out of funding, it may have to cease operations completely.

CFPB Proposes to Change Fair Lending Rules
Last week, the CFPB issued a proposed rule that would narrow its interpretation of what constitutes discrimination under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA). ECOA prohibits mortgage lenders and other creditors from discriminating against credit applicants based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, or receipt of government assistance. CFPB promulgates the regulations that carry out ECOA. The proposed rule would provide that ECOA does not permit disparate impact claims, where a lender is accused of discrimination for practices and/or policies that are not intentionally discriminatory but that in practice benefit one population of consumers over another. The proposal also would prevent for-profit entities from running Special Purpose Credit Programs (SPCPs) that use race, color, national origin, or sex for determining program eligibility. The proposal would include restrictions on the extent to which an SPCP could use religion, marital status, age, or receipt of government assistance as eligibility criteria and require for-profit lenders, before launching a SPCP, to submit a written plan to CFPB providing evidence as to the need for the program.

CFPB will accept comments on the proposed rule until December 15. NCSHA is considering whether to submit comments on behalf of HFAs and their partners. Please email Greg Zagorksi any input you have on NCSHA’s potential response by December 8.

CohnReznick Report Confirms Continued Strong Housing Credit Portfolio Performance
This week, CohnReznick released its biennial Affordable Housing Credit Study, a comprehensive survey of Housing Credit property performance. The report documents continued strong performance of the portfolio, including 97.0 percent physical occupancy, 95.7 percent economic occupancy, 1.46 debt coverage, and more than $900 per unit per annum net cash flow in 2024. The study also reports a cumulative foreclosure rate of just 0.47 percent in the portfolio, with no new foreclosures since 2021.

Despite these strong indicators, the report identifies certain risks within the portfolio caused by lingering pandemic-era economic pressures, including supply chain disruptions, labor market imbalances, inflation, elevated interest rates, and record homelessness. These factors combined have resulted in a greater percentage of properties that fall into the watch-list category for investors and syndicators, mostly for pre-stabilized properties in the lease-up phase delayed by slower-than-expected performance during construction. Besides construction issues, other causes of watch-list expansion from previous years include rent collection losses and increases in operating expenses. According to the report, more than 85 percent of properties on the watch list require additional oversight but pose no imminent foreclosure risk since Housing Credit properties are structured with reserves and other financial protections to prevent foreclosure.

NCSHA in the News
Yahoo! Finance, 11.17.25, This map shows how long it takes Americans to save for a 20% vs. 5% down payment
NAR REALTOR News, 11.16.25, The Impact of Tax Laws on Real Estate
Smart Cities Dive, 11.14.25, HUD is back online — and is making cuts to its homelessness program

Looking Ahead

Legislative and Regulatory Activities

• December 3 | House Financial Services Committee | Hearing: Building Capacity: Reducing Government Roadblocks to Housing Supply
• December 8 | Comments Due to NCSHA | CFPB Amendments to Equal Credit Opportunity Act Regulations
• December 15 | Comments Due | CFPB Amendments to Equal Credit Opportunity Act Regulations
• December 16 and 17 | Housing Financial Services Committee | Markups of Various Measures
• January 14 | NOFO Application Deadline | HUD Continuum of Care Competition and Youth Homeless Demonstration Program Grants

NCSHA, State HFA, and Industry Events

• December 2 | National Women’s Affordable Housing Network Quarterly Policy Update | Virtual
  Jennifer Schwartz will speak at this event.
• December 3 | National Housing Conference’s 2025 Solutions for Affordable Housing | Washington, DC
  Stockton Williams will speak at this event.
• December 5 | Early-Bird Registration Deadline: NCSHA’s HFA Institute 2026 | Washington, DC
• December 19 | Application Deadline | Vera Institute of Justice RFP: Opening Doors Technical Assistance
• December 16 | Housing Supply 2025: Market & Policy Achievements & 2026 Opportunities | Virtual
• January 11 – 16 | NCSHA’s HFA Institute 2026 | Washington, DC