NHC mourns the loss of Conrad Egan



NHC mourns the passing of Conrad Egan, a sage in the affordable housing world whose lifelong dedication shaped the trajectory of housing policy and practice across the nation and beyond. His deep relationship with NHC began in the 1990s when he joined NHC’s board, eventually becoming its Policy Director in 1996. After a sabbatical to serve the Millennial Housing Commission, he returned in 2002 to become President and CEO — a role he held until his retirement in 2010.

Egan brought unmatched depth and insight into the workings of the U.S. affordable housing ecosystem. His distinguished career began in the 1960s in Detroit, Michigan, where he embarked on a path of public service that would lead to transformative impact. He went on to serve for twenty years at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), holding a range of senior leadership roles both in the field and at HUD headquarters.

Egan was a man who not only weathered but helped shape seismic change in affordable housing. He was a champion for landmark developments such as the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), and the HOME Investment Partnerships Program. In 2013, NHC recognized him with the Carl A.S. Coan, Sr., Lifetime Achievement Award for Public Service.

Egan believed in the power of the tools at our disposal and offered clear advice to future housers: “Make sure there is continued funding and support, be alert to opportunities for flexibility, and merge and meld more of our programs.” His voice and vision are a constant reminder that with dedication and wisdom, meaningful change is always within reach.

Over 500 housers gather at NHC’s 2025 Housing Visionary Awards Gala 

The National Housing Conference hosted its 2025 Annual Housing Visionary Awards Gala at The Anthem in Washington, D.C., bringing together over 500 housers from across the country to honor three extraordinary leaders in housing, civil rights, and public service.  

This year’s Housing Visionary Award was presented to Renee Lewis Glover, Founder and Managing Member of The Catalyst Group and former CEO of the Atlanta Housing Authority, and Marc H. Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League. The Carl A.S. Coan, Sr., Lifetime Achievement Award for Public Service was awarded to The Honorable Mel Martinez, former U.S. Senator, former HUD Secretary, and former Mayor of Orange County, Florida. 

Glover was recognized for her transformative leadership in reimagining public housing policy and implementing the HOPE VI program in Atlanta. Her work established new national standards for mixed-income housing and economic development. Morial was honored for his decades-long advocacy for equity in housing, employment, and civil rights, including the National Urban League’s development of the Urban Empowerment Center in Harlem—an initiative integrating affordable housing and economic opportunity in a historically underserved neighborhood. 

Senator Martinez received his award for public service in recognition of a distinguished career spent shaping housing policy at every level of government. A bipartisan consensus-builder, Martinez has played a key role in strengthening the nation’s housing and community development systems while remaining a steadfast advocate for inclusive neighborhoods. 

NHC sends its gratitude to its sponsors for making the evening possible including Host Sponsor JPMorganChase; Presenting Sponsors Bank of America, Rocket Mortgage, and Wells Fargo; and Leader Sponsor the Council of Federal Home Loan Banks. Advocate Sponsors included Capital Funding Group and CFG Bank, along with the National Association of Realtors®. Champion Sponsors included ALTA, IEM, and the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency. 

Hughes confirmed as HUD Deputy Secretary  

The Senate confirmed Andrew Hughes as Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in a 51–43 party-line vote. Hughes previously served as Chief of Staff under Secretaries Ben Carson and Scott Turner and will be responsible for overseeing the agency’s operations and advancing the administration’s housing priorities. In a statement following the vote, Secretary Scott Turner praised Hughes as a “servant leader” and underscored their shared commitment to serving rural, tribal, and urban communities. 

“Serving at HUD is more than a job - it's a calling,” said Deputy Secretary Hughes. “I’m humbled to help lead an agency that expands opportunity for all communities - rural, tribal, and urban. Together, under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Turner, we’re focused on ensuring more Americans can achieve not just housing, but the stability, self-sufficiency, and upward mobility that define the American Dream.” 

Industry stakeholders congratulated the confirmation and expressed interest in working with Hughes to lower financing costs and expand access to both homeownership and rental housing. 

The confirmation comes as HUD continues to navigate leadership transitions. Several key positions remain unfilled, including the heads of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Ginnie Mae, and offices such as General Counsel and Public Affairs.  

HUD Secretary testifies on proposed budget cuts 

HUD Secretary Scott Turner appeared before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (THUD) and the Senate THUD Subcommittee to advocate for the President’s proposed FY2026 budget that would cut HUD spending by half. The budget would eliminate many key programs, including Community Development Block Grants, rental assistance programs, homelessness programs, fair housing, and the HOME Investment Partnerships program. It would also consolidate all rental assistance into a new, undefined state block grant program. 

“We want to be lean and mean, not bloated and bureaucratic,” wrote the Secretary in his Senate testimony, emphasizing the need for assistance to be temporary. “So HUD rental assistance is meant to be a temporary station for people in need in the same way a treadway facilitates the crossing of an obstacle. Military engineers remove the treadway after successfully crossing.”   

Secretary Turner faced pointed questions from both sides of the political aisle during the hearings. He emphasized that the proposed cuts were intended to “more effectively” serve the public by empowering states to address their specific needs and have more “skin in the game.” However, he did not offer specifics on what those state programs would look like or how they would be funded. Several members expressed concern about the impact of funding freezes on service providers and the significant reductions in HUD’s workforce. 

Senate THUD Chair Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) expressed concerns in her opening statement, calling program eliminations penny wise and pound foolish. “The largest concern of course is the proposal to consolidate HUD’s rental assistance program, tenant and project-based Section 8, public housing, housing for the elderly and housing for persons with disabilities, into one single block grant. Combined these programs serve approximately 4.5 million households, the majority of whom are elderly and disabled. There are a lot of concerns that losing this assistance would place those residents at significant likelihood of homelessness,” she stated. “It feels like we are pulling on multiple loose threads without a clear vision of what comes next.”  

At the House hearing, Ranking Member James Clyburn (D-S.C.) warned that the proposal would deepen homelessness as it creates chaos and financial uncertainty. Lawmakers also raised questions about the absence of a clear transition plan and the broad elimination of long-standing programs, noting the lack of assurances that states are equipped to assume those responsibilities. These concerns prompted debate over whether the proposal represents meaningful reform or a departure from HUD’s core mission. 

Lawmakers further made clear that significant structural changes, like converting rental assistance into state block grants, would require approval from authorizing committees. Members of the committees emphasized that the President’s budget serves as a starting point, and Congress is committed to pursuing a more feasible approach that addresses the housing crisis without dismantling key federal programs. 

Democratic Senators call on Pulte to halt Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac plans  

A group of Democratic Senators led by Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) sent a letter urging Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director William Pulte to pause any efforts to reprivatize Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises), following recent public statements and social media posts by President Trump indicating his intention to take the Enterprises public again. The senators shared their concerns regarding how a fast-tracked reprivatization effort could increase costs for homebuyers and rental developers while potentially benefiting select investors. The letter further underscores the critical role the Enterprises play in maintaining affordable mortgage access and warns that hastily stripping their federal backing could destabilize housing markets, raise interest rates, and reduce liquidity. 

The senators’ concerns echo widespread critiques within the housing industry, where many experts have warned that ending conservatorship without a clear plan could undermine market stability and drive-up housing costs. The senators requested that FHFA provide Congress with a full briefing before taking any steps toward releasing the Enterprises from conservatorship or relisting their stock. Additionally, they posed a series of detailed questions regarding stakeholder meetings, economic impact assessments, and regulatory plans should privatization proceed. 

Latest inflation data shows continued shelter impact

Consumer prices rose 2.4% year-over-year in May, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), with persistently high shelter costs continuing to weigh heavily on overall price levels and housing affordability. Shelter rose 0.3% for the month and is up 3.9% from a year ago, though that is the lowest annual increase since 2021. The National Association of Home Builders noted that the impact of tariffs has seemingly not shown in this data but further note that the BLS reduced its CPI collection sample in April due to staffing shortages and could impact data quality.

“The jumbo heavyweight of inflation is housing costs,” said chief economist for the National Association of REALTORS® Lawrence Yun in a recent statement. “Getting shelter costs under control with more housing supply will be the key to getting overall inflation fully tamed and for the Federal Reserve to ‘normalize,’ which in my view means four to six additional rate cuts. Fed rate cuts with high inflation will not result in lower mortgage rates. However, rate cuts because of falling inflation will mean meaningfully lower mortgage rates.”

Mortgage rates remain high, and buyer activity remains slow. Freddie Mac reported that the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate averaged 6.84% last week. Despite the slight improvement in headline inflation, the Federal Reserve is expected to hold rates steady during its June meeting. 

HUD reflects on Foster Care Month

HUD reaffirmed its commitment to youth aging out of the foster care system and reflected on a series of targeted funding efforts during National Foster Care Month in May. The funding includes $1.8 million for HUD’s Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) program, $10 million for the Family Unification Program (FUP), and $1.3 million for the Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) program. Both The FYI and FUP programs offer temporary rental assistance and supportive services aimed at helping the nearly 20,000 young people exiting foster care annually. HUD officials emphasized the importance of these programs as they mitigate youth homelessness and promote long-term self-sufficiency.

Coinciding with the funding efforts, First Lady Melania Trump announced a proposed $25 million investment in the President’s FY2026 Budget to support transitional housing for foster youth.

NCSHA’s Housing Credit Conference Convenes in Chicago This Month 

As Congress works on major tax legislation that includes the most significant changes to the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit in more than a decade, the affordable housing industry is already considering the impact of these changes on the Housing Credit program. When the National Council of State Housing Agencies hosts its 2025 Housing Credit Connect conference later this month in Chicago, the agenda will include discussion on how state agencies are planning to utilize the additional 12.5 percent Credit authority, how a reduction in the tax-exempt bond financing threshold will dramatically alter financial structuring of 4 percent Credit developments, how the new rural and Native American basis boosts will enhance feasibility of deals in these markets, and how the additional Credits and program changes will impact the equity market and Credit pricing. To register for NCSHA’s June 24 – 27 event at the Marriott Marquis Chicago, visit www.ncsha.org/hcc. Walk-in registrations are welcome.