Catherine Cortez Masto Questions HUD Nominee on Affordable Housing in Nevada

Affordable Housing Challenges in Nevada

• 💡 Senator Cortez Masto highlighted that housing costs in Nevada have risen faster than inflation, creating an affordability crisis for both renters and homeowners.
• 🎯 She is seeking commitment from HUD nominee Francis Cassidy to ensure FHA guaranteed mortgages support community land trusts in Southern Nevada.

Federal Land and Housing Development

• 🔑 The Senator emphasized the critical role of federal land in Nevada, with 80% owned by the federal government (60% by BLM), impacting housing costs.
• 🤝 A strong partnership between HUD and BLM is needed to facilitate the transfer of federal land for affordable housing development.
• ⚠️ Concerns were raised about significant staffing losses in agencies like HUD and BLM, which hinders their ability to address housing needs.

HUD Nominee's Commitment

• 🚀 Francis Cassidy expressed enthusiasm for working with Senator Cortez Masto's office to utilize FHA programs, specifically the 221D4 program, to build more affordable housing units.
• ✅ Cassidy committed to working with the Senator's team to create efficiencies at HUD, deregulate and streamline programs to better serve Americans.

Coin Legislation and Reverse Mortgages

• 🏛️ Senator Cortez Masto clarified her intent regarding legislation for celebratory coins, opposing the use of a circulating dollar coin featuring the current president in 2026.
• 📈 Regarding Home Equity Conversion Mortgage Back Securities (HECMBS) 2.0, the nominee indicated a commitment to a thoughtful approach to address operational and financial issues in HUD's reverse mortgage programs.