Comment Submitted by National Community Stabilization Trust (NCST)

Dear Office of General Counsel, The National Community Stabilization Trust (NCST) appreciates the opportunity to comment on the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) proposed rule changes regarding equal access across its programs. As an organization dedicated to advancing sustainable homeownership, we write to express our strong opposition to this proposal. While the public discussion surrounding this rule frequently centers on the troubling impacts on emergency shelter access, the proposal’s broad regulatory reach directly threatens critical, long-standing protections across the entire housing spectrum—including the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) mortgage lending market. A fair and stable housing market depends on a clear commitment to evaluating qualified buyers based strictly on their financial merits and readiness to purchase. By removing explicit protections for "actual or perceived sexual orientation" and "gender identity" from HUD’s regulations, this proposal exacerbates existing barriers for qualified LGBTQ+ homebuyers. Data consistently demonstrates that same-sex couples and LGBTQ+ applicants already navigate systemic disparities, frequently facing higher mortgage denial rates and increased borrowing costs compared to similarly situated peers.1 Eliminating explicit protections actively compounds these market inefficiencies while weakening the standard oversight tools available to the Federal Housing Administration to prevent lender discrimination against qualified borrowers. Furthermore, removing explicit categories while narrowing the definition of sex creates significant gray areas for lenders, housing providers, and compliance officers. Rather than streamlining administration, this operational uncertainty ultimately increases risk across the entire housing and lending sectors The ripple effects of this rule extend beyond homeownership into broader housing security. By allowing the exclusion of individuals from emergency shelters based on identification mismatches and opening the door for housing providers to deny rental assistance to same-sex households, the rule actively drives vulnerable populations toward greater economic and housing instability. This concern is shared widely across the housing sector and by federal lawmakers. A coalition of 24 U.S. Senators has noted that the proposal directs HUD to ignore established legal precedent without a clear, evidence-based justification for such a sweeping policy shift, placing vulnerable communities at significant risk. Dismantling rules that safeguard qualified borrowers and renters from arbitrary exclusion does not serve the housing market or the broader economy. To foster strong, stable communities, federal policy should focus on expanding access to homeownership based on financial readiness, not rolling back established protections. Sincerely, National Community Stabilization Trust (NCST)