Mrvan Leads Letter to HUD in Support of Housing Counseling Programs

Washington, DC – Last week, Congressman Frank J. Mrvan (IN-01), along with Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari (AZ-03) and 42 other Members of Congress, led a letter to Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Scott Turner in support of certain housing counseling programs.

Specifically, the letter urges the agency to reverse eligibility restrictions in the fiscal year 2025 Notice of Funding Opportunity for the Housing Counseling Grant program, and requests that HUD-Approved Housing Counseling Agencies are able to continue providing essential pre-purchase, post-purchase, and tenant counseling services to communities.

Congressman Mrvan stated, “The proposed funding restrictions to the Housing Counseling Grant program will hinder the delivery of effective homeowner and rental counseling services in Northwest Indiana and across the country.  As communities nationwide face skyrocketing housing and utilities costs, we must ensure that this critical program continues to be able to assist families, seniors, and individuals achieve stable and affordable housing.”

Toyia Moore, Executive Director of the Northwest Indiana Reinvestment Alliance, stated, “Homeownership and rental counseling has proven to empower families with knowledge, accessibility and resources to achieve and sustain affordable housing, strengthening communities and ensuring housing stability is available to everyone in need.”

Jen Trowbridge, President and CEO of CoAction, stated, “Housing stability is foundational for financial stability, better jobs, and better health.  For many, reaching stability is achieved by learning about how to obtain stable housing, what can be achieved, resources to help strengthen assets, and people to lean on when life gets financially complicated.  These programs help prevent instability.”

This letter has the support of Northwest Indiana Reinvestment Alliance, CoAction, Prosperity Indiana, Intend Indiana, Homestead Resources, and the Coalition of HUD Counseling Intermediaries.

The text of the letter is below and a pdf is available here.  

“Dear Secretary Turner,

“We write to express our deep concerns regarding funding restrictions in the fiscal year 2025 (FY25) Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Housing Counseling grant program, which will significantly hinder the delivery of effective homeowner and rental counseling services.  We urge the Department to immediately reconsider these restrictions and amend the NOFO to allow HUD-Approved Housing Counseling Agencies (HCAs) to continue providing essential pre-purchase, post-purchase, and tenant counseling services to our communities.

“By eliminating funds for pre-purchase counseling and homebuyer education, the funding announcement will make it even harder for prospective homebuyers to achieve the dream of homeownership.  Last year, 52% of all one-on-one counseling sessions at HCAs were for prepurchase counseling.  These services provide first-time homebuyers and low-to-moderate income individuals with tools for seeking, financing, and owning a home.  Terminating this funding is especially harmful given that counseling is a requirement for receiving purchase assistance under the HOME Investment Partnerships Program.

“Additionally, narrowing the scope of eligibility for post-purchase counseling to FHA, Rural Development and VA loans excludes roughly 70% of mortgages from critical foreclosure prevention services.  While the federal government should seek to ensure a return on its investments, households and communities benefit from post-purchase counseling and reduced foreclosure rates regardless of who holds their mortgage.  As foreclosure filings rise nationwide, it is essential that these services remain widely available.

“Furthermore, the NOFO limits eligibility for tenant counseling services to those already receiving HUD vouchers or living in public housing, thus excluding many individuals and families struggling to keep up with rising rent and utility costs.  While counseling services are a valuable tool to help HUD-assisted households pursue a path to self-sufficiency, only about 10% of renters receive rental assistance.  This leaves out the vast majority of renters and exacerbates challenges in areas where voucher eligibility is high, but usage is low due to long waitlists.

“We strongly urge HUD to reverse these harmful restrictions and issue an addendum to the FY25 Comprehensive Housing Counseling and Housing Counseling Training NOFO that restores eligibility back to the original scope.  This will allow HCAs to continue providing vital housing support services to all homeowners and renters.  As communities nationwide face skyrocketing housing costs, we are committed to ensuring that the Housing Counseling grant program continues helping families, seniors, and individuals achieve stable and affordable housing.  We appreciate your attention to this critical matter.”

Sincerely,

Rep. Frank J. Mrvan (IN-01)

Rep. Yassamin Ansari (AZ-03)

Rep. Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (GA-02)

Rep. Nikki Budzinski (IL-13)

Rep. Janelle Bynum (OR-05)

Rep. Salud Carbajal (CA-24)

Rep. Ed Case (HI-01) 

Rep. Sean Casten (IL-06)

Rep. Kathy Castor (FL-14)

Rep. Steve Cohen (TN-09)

Rep. Henry Cuellar (TX-28)

Rep. Dwight Evans (PA-03)

Rep. Bill Foster (IL-11)

Rep. Adelita Grijalva (AZ-07)

Rep. Jahana Hayes (CT-05)

Rep. Steven Horsford (NV-04)

Rep. Val Hoyle (OR-04)

Rep. Glenn Ivey (MD-04)

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (WA-07)

Rep. Julie Johnson (TX-32)

Rep. William Keating (MA-09)

Rep. Robin Kelly (IL-02)

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08)

Rep. Greg Landsman (OH-01)

Rep. John Larson (CT-01)

Rep. Ted Lieu (CA-36)

Rep. Betty McCollum (MN-04)

Rep. LaMonica McIver (NJ-10)

Rep. Robert Menendez (NJ-08)

Rep. Gwen Moore (WI-04)

Rep. Johnny Olszewski (MD-02)

Rep. Mark Pocan (WI-02)

Rep. Mike Quigley (IL-05)

Rep. Emily Randall (WA-06)

Rep. Janice Schakowsky (IL-09)

Rep. Hillary Scholten (MI-03)

Rep. Adam Smith (WA-09) 

Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-04)

Rep. Dina Titus (NV-01)

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (MI-12)

Rep. Paul Tonko (NY-20)

Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY-15)

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25)

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12)

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