December 05, 2025

Torres, Sykes Lead 52 New Dems in Letter Calling on Trump Administration to Address Housing Affordability Crisis

Washington, D.C. — Today, Congresswoman Norma Torres (CA-35), Chair of the New Democrat Coalition Housing, Infrastructure, & Transportation Working Group, and Congresswoman Emilia Sykes (OH-13), Chair of the Housing Task Force, led 52 New Dems in a letter to President Trump urging the Administration to take immediate steps to help make housing more affordable and accessible for more Americans.

In the letter, the New Dems lay out eight commonsense and immediate steps the Administration could take to address the ongoing housing affordability crisis. The letter comes as the Secretary of the Treasury has indicated the Administration is planning to declare a “national housing emergency” to address rising costs, while refusing to take quick and decisive actions to actually bring down the cost of housing.

The letter reads in part:

“We agree with the Secretary’s comments that this is an ‘all hands on deck’ challenge and believe there are concrete steps the Administration and Congress should take to meet this ongoing crisis. However, details on actual policies that would expand affordable housing options have not been provided. In fact, recently announced policies at the Department of Housing and Urban Development would do the opposite, and reverse progress made in fighting homelessness and go against Congressional instruction.”

The recommendations include restoring funding for Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) homelessness programs, lowering tariffs on construction materials to decrease costs, improving data collection and transparency, and prioritizing reforms to planning, permitting, and zoning.

You can read the full letter here, and below:

Dear President Trump:

Access to affordable housing is critical for our nation’s long-term success. For too long, rising home prices and rents have kept home ownership out of reach for teachers, nurses, firefighters, and millions of other Americans, forcing families to choose between saving for their children’s education, affording needed healthcare, and keeping a roof over their heads.

These heartbreaking financial decisions have meant too many families have given up on the American dream, an America where any child can grow up to have a better future than their parents. That is why the New Democrat Coalition has for years called for policies to make owning a home more accessible for more Americans by building more affordable housing, improving availability of capital for homebuyers, and lowering overall housing costs. We write to urge your administration to take immediate action to increase affordable housing production and lower housing costs for Americans.

Past comments from the Secretary of the Treasury indicate that the administration is planning to declare a “national housing emergency” to address the rising costs of housing. We need more than declarations and hollow promises. We agree with the Secretary’s comments that this is an "all hands on deck" challenge and believe there are concrete steps the Administration and Congress should take to meet this ongoing crisis. However, details on actual policies that would expand affordable housing options have not been provided. In fact, recently announced policies at the Department of Housing and Urban Development would do the opposite, and reverse progress made in fighting homelessness and go against Congressional instruction.

There are numerous existing policy actions within your authority that you and your administration can act on today, to help build more housing and lower the cost of buying, renting, or selling a home. We urge your administration to take concrete steps to tackle the housing crisis by focusing on proven and practical solutions, including:

Reverse the proposed cuts and changes to the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Continuum of Care Program announced on November 13, 2025, which puts 170,000 people at immediate risk of homelessness.
Develop best practices for zoning and land-use policies, including model codes at the HUD in consultation with agencies such as the Department of Transportation and Department of Commerce, which will help a teacher afford to live in the same community where she works, rather than commuting two hours each day.
Prioritize federal funds for projects that include planning, permitting, and zoning reforms to promote more streamlined development, including updating grant criteria to reward jurisdictions with simplified codes, which will help cut through the red tape that adds tens of thousands of dollars in costs to every new home.
Update Federal Housing Administration (FHA) mortgage disclosures to include Department of Veteran Affairs’ (VA) Home Loans alongside FHA and conventional loan options to maximize transparency, which will show veterans that VA loans often offer better terms than conventional options—ensuring our service members aren't missing out on benefits they've earned.
Improve data collection efforts at the Census Bureau and HUD to better understand how and where housing is being lost and not replaced so Congress and the Administration can respond urgently when a community loses 100 affordable units and only builds back 20.
Exempt housing construction materials from tariffs to lower construction costs by thousands of dollars per home, savings that developers can pass directly to homebuyers.
Enhance data transparency by requiring the Federal Housing Finance Agency, HUD, VA, and Department of Agriculture to release public loan-level appraisal data that identifies lenders and appraisers, but protects homeowner privacy, ensuring that a family's zip code or last name doesn't determine whether they can get a fair mortgage.
Provide significant funding anti-discrimination programs at HUD to ensure that all Americans can buy, rent, or sell homes at fair prices, which safeguard all Americans, regardless of race, religion, gender, disability, or marriage status.

The housing crisis demands specific action with real impact. We strongly encourage your administration to work collaboratively with Congress to implement these measures and other forward-looking policies to address the nation’s housing challenges. By pursuing these practical reforms, we can deliver real results for American families while respecting constitutional limits and building the bipartisan consensus necessary for lasting solutions.

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