Claim to Promote Affordable Housing
Two Trump (who else?) executive orders were issued in March (2026) which basically cause minority borrower additional hoops to jump through or road blocks to loans. In fact, the claim by this administration, the removal these mortgage protections will promote access to mortgages and remove barriers.
The National Fair Housing Alliance® us claiming the opposite will occur. In that the removal of mortgage protections responsible for fairness will do little if anything to boost the supply of affordable housing. I have some issues with this article and the topic too . . .
“New White House Executive Orders Skirt Civil Rights Laws in its Claim to Promote Affordable Housing and Increased Lending Opportunities,” NFHA
The March 13, 2026 executive Orders “Promoting Access to Mortgage Credit” and “Removing Regulatory Barriers to Affordable Home Construction” is purported to be the opposite of what the two acts actually do. It threatens justice-based housing and transportation initiatives and those laws focusing on providing energy efficiency in homes.
The Trump Administration continues to rollback civil rights protections expanding fair access to housing and lending ensuring the safety and soundness of the housing finance system. These actions are being taken while failing to address affordability. To most first, new home buyers this is an important concern for millions of families.
The act being changed increases the supply of mortgages being made by community banks and other “smaller banks” with assets up to $100 billion. The Trump change threatens the supply of single-family homes.
Nikitra Bailey, Executive Vice President of the National Fair Housing Alliance: “Full enforcement of the Fair Housing Act is key to addressing the nation’s fair and affordable housing crisis, which is harming millions of people in America. Our nation’s civil rights and consumer protection laws are essential to ensuring that all people can achieve the American Dream. The laws provide the blueprint to increase the supply of affordable housing and ensure that no person is unlawfully denied a mortgage. They are crucial to removing harmful zoning policies that make it impossible to increase the supply of affordable housing; reforming biased home appraisals that deny Black, Latino, and other families the ability to fairly build wealth; and transforming discriminatory underwriting, credit scoring, and AI systems.”
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act’s mortgage reforms returned safety to the housing market. Improvements to the Qualified Mortgage Rule and empowering the use of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act’s Special Purpose Credit Programs. It started during 2019 creating important opportunities for people of all backgrounds to fairly access mortgages.
In case you forgot how TBTF (necessary reserves to back the tranched MBS and the more risky CDS/naked CDS) threatened the US with their minimalist mortgage loans . . .
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“The Banking Hustle,” Angry Bear
The Fed (2018) let Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs off the hook after both failed the required stress tests under Dodd-Frank. The stress test is supposed to predict whether banks and so-called banks like Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs can weather a financial crisis.
Back-step a little in time, just a few months ago Congress in all of its wisdom passed a revision to Dodd-Frank which raised the limit of banks from $50 billion to $250 billion in assets-cash-capital to avoid the Dodd-Frank stress tests. This was done under the guise of being called, (cough-cough, clearing my throat) community banks or The Community (Bank) Hustle as the Intercept would label it. You would expect this type of push to occur from Republicans; but, Democrats also joined in the give-away to the banking industry. 17 Democrats who were mostly (10) up for elections.
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This was all about big banking taking advantage of their size to gamble on Wall Street. Indeed and any entity could be called a bank.
Rather than concentrate interest on banking, the Trump administration is looking to minorities and low income. Earlier actions were coupled with establishing innovative First-Generation programs, newer and non-discriminatory credit-score models, and reforms to appraisal bias and mortgage servicing through the end of 2024. These actions were creating growth in homeownership rates for homeowners of all races from 2019 through the end of 2024. Such actions enabled Black American’s home ownership rate to grow for the first time since the Housing and Financial Crisis of 2008
In other words, no stress test for what was called a larger bank (>$50 billion) then. This has to be Ground Hog Day as we are reliving the same issues and solutions we experienced in 2008 and talked about in 2018. And doing the same to resolve lending issues. Removing safe guards for borrowers. Maybe I am wrong here? Duh! I do not get that feeling.
The article continues . . .
Removing critical protections responsible for fairness in lending under the cover of making it easier for “smaller banks” with assets up to $100 billion to increase mortgage lending is a false choice. NFHA has long advocated for banks of all sizes to increase the supply of affordable, small dollar mortgages to ensure that First-Generation homebuyers could fairly access credit and outbid institutional investors buying up the affordable housing stock in cities throughout the nation. Weakening the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data reporting requirements will only provide cover for harmful practices and slow meaningful enforcement actions that make achieving homeownership more affordable for everyday people.
In all of this, where are the low mgt. interest rates?
“Voters demanded comprehensive solutions to America’s fair and affordable housing crisis, not a piecemeal approach that would weaken fundamental civil rights without making everyday life more affordable. People want real solutions to drive down the cost of rent, mortgages, insurance, utilities, and taxes while expanding access to homeownership. The President’s recent executive orders will impede—rather than advance—meaningful solutions to assist everyday people struggling with increased housing costs.”
“New White House Executive Orders Skirt Civil Rights Laws in its Claim to Promote Affordable Housing and Increased Lending Opportunities,” NFHA