The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today that it has won an important Fair Housing Act victory in the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. The decision upheld a Final Order of the Secretary of HUD following a trial before an administrative law judge that a condominium association discriminated against a resident with disabilities by refusing to allow him to keep an emotional support animal.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it is charging a White Plains, New York, co-op with housing discrimination for refusing to grant an exception to its policies that would allow a person with disabilities to buy a unit there. HUD’s Office of Regional Counsel for New England, which has jurisdiction over the case, issued the Charge of Discrimination on April 26.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced that it is making $2 million available to support research to develop and improve methods for the identification and control of key residential health hazards.  Key hazards include issues such as pest infestation, poor indoor air quality, injury prevention, mold and excess moisture, and lead in drinking water.  It is especially important to protect vulnerable populations, such as children, seniors, and people with chronic illnesses such as asthma, from exposure to these hazards

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today unveiled a new mobile app to help educate the public about hidden home hazards that can impact the health of their families. TheHealthy Homes App is designed to raise awareness about potentially serious health and safety problems in the home and the steps consumers can take to protect themselves

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it is making $37.3 million available to fight housing discrimination under HUD’s 2016 Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) Notice of Funding Availability(NOFA). This year’s three funding notices support a variety of important fair housing activities, including fair housing testing in the rental and sales market, public education efforts, capacity building, and education and outreach activities.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Julián Castro awarded $355 million to more than 1,200 local homeless housing and service programs across the U.S. and Puerto Rico (see attached chart). These Continuum of Care (CoC) grants support the Obama Administration’s efforts to end homelessness and build upon the $1.6 billion in funding HUD awarded through a first round of funding in March.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today awarded $9.9 million in “sweat equity” grants to produce at least 541 affordable homes for low-income individuals and families. Funded through HUD’s Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP), the funding awarded today, along with the labor contributed by these households, will significantly lower the cost of homeownership.

In an effort to promote and increase the work being done across the country to improve the grade-level reading skills of children living in federally assisted housing, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Julián Castro today announced HUD is joining forces with theCampaign for Grade-Level Reading, a national partnership to ensure that more children in low-income families succeed in school and graduate prepared for college, a career, and active citizenship.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today a $22,600 Conciliation Agreement between Housing Equality Law Project and the owners and managers of a San Diego-based property management company, settling allegations that they discriminated against persons with disabilities who required the use of assistance animals. Read the agreement.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today an agreement with a group of Las Vegas landlords settling allegations they retaliated against a tenant with disabilities because she requested permission to install a ramp that would allow her to enter and exit her apartment. Read the agreement.

In an effort to help young people involved in the justice system find jobs and housing, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) today announced $1.75 million for Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) and nonprofit legal service organizations to address the challenges justice-involved individuals face when trying to find work and a place to call home. The grantees are listed below.

Sales of new single-family houses in March 2016 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 511,000, according to estimates released jointly today by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Census Bureau. This is 1.5 percent (±15.0%)* below the revised February rate of 519,000 and is 5.4 percent (±16.0%)* above the March 2015 estimate of 485,000.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today a $1 million agreement between the Fair Housing Project of North Carolina Legal Aid and North Carolina-based Fidelity Bank to resolve allegations the mortgage lender engaged in unfair lending practices against minority applicants

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Census Bureau jointly announced the following new residential construction statistics for March 2016: Privately owned housing units authorized by building permits in March were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,086,000. This is 7.7 percent (±1.2%) below the revised February rate of 1,177,000, but is 4.6 percent (±0.9%) above the March 2015 estimate of 1,038,000.  Single-family authorizations in March were at a rate of 727,000; this is 1.2 percent (±1.1%) below the revised February figure of 736,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 324,000 in March.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today it is charging landlords in Beloit, Kansas with violating the Fair Housing Act after allegedly discriminating against a female tenant with disabilities by not renewing her lease, sending her a notice containing discriminatory statements about her disability, and retaliating against her for filing a previous fair housing complaint.

Thirty-nine local public housing agencies across the country will continue to enjoy significantly greater flexibility to operate their federally funded housing programs following an announcement today by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  Existing agreements under HUD’s Moving to Work (MTW) Demonstration Program for 39 public housing authorities (PHAs) will now continue in effect until 2028 (see list below).

Cox Communications today announced a major investment in its efforts to narrow the digital divide through its support of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) ConnectHome initiative. Cox Communications is extending its Connect2Compete low-cost Internet offering to any HUD-assisted household with school-age children within Cox’s 18-state service area. Cox operates 6 clustered cable systems in 18 states: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Virginia.

U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Julián Castro today named Donna Batch to serve as HUD’s Northwest Regional Administrator for a four-state region that includes Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington.  Batch currently serves as HUD’s Acting Regional Administrator in that region.

In an effort to recognize foundations that work to improve neighborhoods and the lives of the people who live in them, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and the Council on Foundations announced the 2016 winners of the HUD Secretary’s Award for Public-Philanthropic Partnerships.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) today announced they are co-hosting an annual educational conference from June 13-16, 2016 in San Antonio to address today’s pressing environmental health issues.The State of Big Ideas: Moving Environmental Health Outside the Box will include sessions on emerging issues such as Zika virus, preserving affordable housing through healthy home repairs, marijuana, climate change, the Flint, Michigan water crisis and more.