Federal Housing Policy: Affordable Housing, Fair Housing, and Mortgage Markets

This report provides an overview of federal housing policy, including programs administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), and the government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It examines affordable housing programs including Section 8 housing choice vouchers and the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit.

The report discusses the Fair Housing Act and enforcement of anti-discrimination protections in housing, as well as the federal role in mortgage markets, including FHA insurance programs, VA home loan guarantees, and the conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Policy considerations include the affordable housing supply shortage, homelessness prevention programs, proposals for housing finance reform, the impact of interest rates on homeownership affordability, and federal disaster housing assistance programs.