Following news that the Department of Housing and Urban Development will see a $6 billion cut under President Donald Trump’s proposed budget, a housing group in the state is warning of sharp losses for New Jersey’s poorest cities. Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey President Staci Berger predicted that the loss of funding will exacerbate the state’s ongoing foreclosure crisis.
“President Trump’s proposed cuts to programs that support New Jersey’s hardworking families, seniors, and special needs households are dangerous, callous and irresponsible. Our friends, family, and neighbors, who are the backbone of the economy, will suffer under this proposal. We urge New Jersey’s entire Congressional delegation to reject the proposed cuts to HUD,” Berger wrote in a statement.
“HUD has strengthened New Jersey’s communities and families through programs like rental assistance, for which there a demonstrable and unrelenting demand, the revitalization of vacant and abandoned properties, housing counseling, and so much more. The Network, as a HUD-approved housing counseling intermediary, offers technical assistance for qualified agencies that assist in the areas of homeownership, rental and foreclosure counseling as well as financial education. These services are crucial here; New Jersey continues to lead the nation in foreclosures.”
News of the cuts broke Wednesday after documents leaked to the Washington Post showed the administration mulling a $54 billion overall decline in domestic spending. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson attempted to calm employees at the agency in an email, where he wrote that “starting numbers are rarely final numbers.”
New Jersey leads the country in foreclosures, with bulk of home losses taking place in that state’s less populous southern counties. The number of homes in foreclosure dropped 23.9 percent to 427,000 nationwide last year, but New Jersey is still suffering from a disproportionate 4 percent foreclosure rating according to CoreLogic’s March 2016 National Foreclosure Report.
Berger said her group will be asking lawmakers to oppose the Trump budget.
“We are calling on our elected officials in Congress to focus on Main Street, not Wall Street, in this budget. Our delegation should help us build a thriving NJ by protecting investments that allow our residents to be able to call NJ home.”
