Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for Housing facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for Housing
Seal of the Department of Housing and Urban Development
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Style	Madam Secretary The Honorable (formal address in writing)
Reports to	Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
Seat	Washington, D.C., US
Appointer	The president with Senate advice and consent
Term length	No fixed term
Constituting instrument	42 U.S.C. § 3533
Formation	September 9, 1965; 60 years ago (1965-09-09)
First holder	Philip N. Brownstein
Salary	Level IV of the Executive Schedule

The Assistant Secretary for Housing is an important job in the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, often called HUD. This person is also known as the Federal Housing Commissioner. Their main role is to help make sure people have good places to live.

This job involves looking after a huge amount of money, over $1.75 trillion, that helps people get home loans through the Federal Housing Administration. They also make sure rules are followed for buying and selling homes, and they oversee how companies like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac help with housing. Plus, they work with the manufactured housing industry, which makes homes built in factories.

What Does the Assistant Secretary Do?

The person in this role is chosen by the President and must be approved by the United States Senate. This means they are a very trusted official.

Helping the Secretary

The Assistant Secretary for Housing is third in line to take over if the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development cannot do their job. This shows how important their position is within the department. They earn a good salary, which can be up to $200,000 a year. The position was held by Julia Gordon until January 20, 2025, and is currently vacant.

History of the Role

When the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) was created in 1965, there was already a job called the Federal Housing Commissioner. This role was then made part of the new Assistant Secretary position.

Changes Over Time

Over the years, the job changed a few times. At one point, HUD Secretary George W. Romney split the role into two different jobs:

• Assistant Secretary for Housing Production and Mortgage Credit: This person focused on creating new housing and managing home loans.
• Assistant Secretary for Housing Management: This person focused on managing existing housing programs.

But then, in 1976, HUD Secretary Carla Hills decided to combine these two roles back into one. Since then, the job has been known as the Assistant Secretary for Housing & Federal Housing Commissioner, which is the title used today. Many different people have held this important position over the years, helping to shape housing policies in the United States.

Images for kids

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  Guy T. O. Hollyday

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  Philip N. Brownstein

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  H.R. Crawford

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  Robert C. Odle, Jr.

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  Catherine Austin Fitts

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  Brian D. Montgomery

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  Carol Galante

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  Biniam Gebre

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  Julia Gordon