Source: The Wall Street Journal

Date Published: 07.22.2025

Link: Affordable-Housing Projects Stall Over Proposed Cuts to Rental Assistance

The Trump administration wants to cut $27 billion from rental assistance programs like Section 8, and it’s already shaking things up in affordable housing. Developers are putting projects on hold, lenders are backing off, and no one knows if the money will be there next year. In places like New York and California, where housing costs are through the roof, these vouchers help cover operating costs and pay down loans, so losing them makes the numbers stop working. Even though the administration expanded the Low Income Housing Tax Credit and made programs like Opportunity Zones permanent, those wins don’t mean much if the buildings can’t cover their bills. Some experts say up to $50 billion in federally backed loans could be at risk, and the pipeline of new affordable housing could dry up. The whole thing sends a mixed message and makes it way harder to build or maintain housing that people can actually afford.