Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, issued the following statement on the Trump Administration’s failure to issue a final U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) regulation implementing reforms to the Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA) policies regarding mortgage insurance for condominiums.

“Condominiums are often the most affordable option for first-time and low-to-moderate income homebuyers, which is why my colleagues and I passed legislation in 2016 to reduce burdensome restrictions on condominium financing and provide relief for qualified borrowers who wish to purchase homes,” said Ranking Member Waters. “Unfortunately, Secretary Carson has failed to publish final rules that will implement key changes made under the law, including reforms to FHA’s requirements for condominiums. This is unacceptable, particularly in the midst of the affordable housing crisis. Now that the Senate has confirmed a commissioner for the Federal Housing Administration, there is simply no excuse for HUD not to act.”

The Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act included numerous provisions to increase the number of FHA certified condominiums and expand access to affordable homeownership opportunities for American families, including an update to the FHA’s owner-occupancy requirement and a more streamlined recertification process. However, nearly two years after the bill was signed into law, HUD has yet to publish final rules that will implement significant portions of the law, including reforms to FHA’s current policies on condominiums.

The Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act included legislation that Ranking Member Waters introduced in 2015 to increase flexibility for public housing authorities to develop new units of affordable housing to serve vulnerable populations. Several provisions included in H.R. 3700 were also in earlier versions of Section 8 reform legislation introduced by Waters in previous Congresses. Waters also successfully worked with Republicans to remove problematic provisions in earlier drafts of H.R. 3700, including one that would have negatively affected families with children living in federally-assisted housing.

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