Task Forces & Working Groups
NHC convenes and actively engages its members, stakeholders and others in order to improve coordination of diverse agendas and to build consensus on key housing issues.
NHC establishes issue-specific task forces and working groups that allow members to work together on solutions. Groups are often formed quickly in response to emerging issues.
Housing Supply Working Group
The NHC Housing Supply Working Group brings together housing policy practitioners, researchers, and advocates to identify barriers to housing production and advance practical federal policy solutions. Through peer learning, expert engagement, and collaborative research, the group develops shared policy priorities and resources informed by its members’ expertise.
The working group focuses on key supply-side challenges, including construction labor and workforce needs, land availability and zoning, builder financing, materials and supply chains, regulatory barriers, and innovative approaches such as manufactured and modular housing and missing-middle housing. While related demand-side issues may inform the discussion, the group’s primary focus is on policies and strategies that can help increase the nation’s housing supply.
Residential Property Insurance Collaborative
The NHC Residential Property Insurance Collaborative (RPIC) brings together housing advocates, researchers, lenders, insurers, and other industry leaders to address the growing challenges surrounding the availability and affordability of property insurance. Rising insurance costs are placing increasing pressure on homeowners, renters, housing providers, lenders, and communities, while changing climate risks and market conditions are making adequate coverage more difficult to obtain in many parts of the country.
RPIC provides a forum for leaders across the housing and insurance sectors to develop practical, collaborative solutions that strengthen the long-term stability of both markets. The Collaborative’s work explores opportunities to improve housing resiliency, expand access to sustainable insurance coverage, strengthen consumer understanding, and market transparency, and address the broader financial and systemic risks associated with rising insurance costs.
Black Homeownership Working Group
The Black Homeownership Collaborative (BHC) is a coalition of more than 100 organizations and individuals working toward a shared goal of creating 3 million net new Black homeowners by the end of 2030. Through its 3by30 initiative, the Collaborative advances practical and scalable solutions designed to expand opportunities for Black homeownership while supporting existing homeowners.
As part of this effort, BHC launched 3by30.org, a trusted resource that provides prospective homebuyers with accessible information and guidance throughout the homebuying process. The site also features the Black Homeownership Collaborative’s Mortgage Calculator, a user-friendly tool that helps prospective homeowners estimate monthly mortgage payments and determine an affordable home price based on their financial information. Together, these resources help make the path to homeownership clearer and more accessible.
CRA Task Force
There’s a historic opportunity to modernize the CRA and improve the lives of millions of Americans. On May 20, the OCC issued its final CRA rule just six weeks after the end of the comment period on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPR) and amid the worst health and economic crisis of our lifetimes. Our formal comment letter on the CRA NPR stated, “we have no idea how severely the pandemic will impact our economy, the financial system and communities throughout the nation. Committing resources to regulatory initiatives that do not directly support our national response to the COVID-19 pandemic is a dangerous distraction.”
In October 2021, the Federal Reserve issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR). On behalf of our task force, NHC submitted comments on the ANPR in February 2021. The task force believes that CRA modernization must adopt these key four principles:
- Increase investment in communities that are currently underserved;
- Benefit more LMI people, particularly people of color, who live in those communities;
- Ensure that CRA lending and investment does not lead to displacement of the very people
it is meant to help; and - Make both bank performance and government enforcement more transparent, consistent
and clear.
NHC’s CRA Task Force will work with the Federal Reserve Board, OCC and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to develop effective CRA modernization that we hope will ultimately be adopted by all bank regulators.
Housing Finance Reform Working Group
On May 21, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced an NPR establishing a new regulatory capital framework for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The proposed rule is a re-proposal of the NPR published in June 2018 under former FHFA Director Mel Watt and would require the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) to retain 4% of their assets in capital, which would have amounted to roughly $240 billion last year, once they are released from conservatorship.
NHC’s Housing Finance Working Group will work on preparing detailed recommendations in response to the NPR.
In September 2019, NHC’s Housing Finance Reform Working Group published a white paper outlining key objectives to help guide the administration as they consider the future of the housing finance system and the federal government’s role in that system.
Racial Equity Working Group
The Racial Equity Working Group gathers professionals across organizations to concentrate efforts to improve racial equity and justice for Black Americans, and Asian American and Pacific Islanders, Latino Americans, and Native American national origins in the area of housing.
The working group is leading efforts around four core areas:
- Data Collection and Analysis
- Tracking Legislation and Initiatives
- Improving Existing Programs
- Building Solidarity and Allyship
If you are interested in joining any of these Working Groups, please contact Brittany Webb at bwebb@nhc.org.