President Donald Trump may declare a national housing emergency this fall, said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
The move would tee up housing affordability as a key issue ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, which appear to be top of mind for the Trump Administration as redistricting fights play out in several states. It would be the first national emergency related to housing declared since the collapse of the housing bubble drove the U.S. into the 2008 financial crisis.
“We may declare a national housing emergency in the fall,” Bessent told the Washington Examiner on Monday.
“We’re trying to figure out what we can do, and we don’t want to step into the business of states, counties, and municipal governments,” Bessent said. “I think everything is on the table.”
Here’s what to know.
What does a national emergency declaration do?
Under the 1976 National Emergencies Act, the President can declare a national emergency at his discretion. The act does not provide an explicit definition of what constitutes an “emergency,” but it does require the President to issue a formal declaration, such as through an executive order, and cite the statutory powers he plans to use in that declaration.
Declaring a national emergency allows the President to bypass Congress to take a range of actions limited to the 137 emergency powers defined by law, as well as an additional 13 statutory powers if Congress declares a national emergency. During his second term, Trump has so far declared nine national emergencies, mostly touching on immigration and trade, as well as a 10th “crime emergency” in Washington, D.C. Trump has used his emergency powers to impose sweeping tariffs on much of the world, as well as to give the military oversight over immigration enforcement.
Congress can terminate a national emergency by passing legislation, although the President can veto the resolution unless it reaches a supermajority. Otherwise, a national emergency can technically go on forever, so long as it is reaffirmed every year.
But national emergencies, and actions undertaken during them, can also be challenged in court. A federal appeals court ruled last week that most of Trump’s tariffs are illegal, although Trump is likely to challenge the decision before it takes effect on Oct. 14. In May, 15 Democratic state attorneys general also sued to block Trump’s national energy emergency, arguing that there is no emergency and alleging that his Jan. 20 executive order is being used to illegally evade reviews of fossil fuel projects. The lawsuit is ongoing.
Trump has been criticized for his broad use of national emergency declarations as executive overreach. Some experts have also criticized the legal outlines of emergency declarations in the U.S. more generally, with Elizabeth Goitein of the left-leaning Brennan Center for Justice thinktank calling them “easy to declare and hard to stop.”
Does the U.S. have a housing crisis?
The U.S. housing crisis has been developing over the last two decades, driven by a persistent housing supply shortage and accelerated by the 2008 financial crisis, after which home construction never recovered. Some estimates suggest that the U.S. is short around 4 million homes, while housing deficits are worst in Greater New York and Los Angeles.
The crisis worsened after the COVID-19 pandemic, which pushed up rental prices and was followed by an increase in interest rates to counter inflation. The pandemic also made the costs to build higher through labor shortages and supply-chain disruptions. The monthly payment on the median-priced home across the U.S. went up 59% between 2020 and 2023. And some experts suggest that climate change is exacerbating the crisis, as many homes are underinsured for natural disasters, which are increasing in frequency. Others argue that growth of institutional investors buying homes for rental has also contributed to the housing crunch.
“Now, across the country, prices are five times income in places like Boston … and in the high-cost markets in California, they’re 10 times income,” Chris Herbert, managing director of Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, told Harvard Magazine last October.
“How do we get housing costs down?” he added. “Because we have to think that the private sector should be able to provide housing that people with decent jobs can afford.”
What actions could Trump take?
Bessent declined to say whether Trump was considering any specific actions to address housing affordability. Administration officials are looking at ways to standardize local building and zoning codes and lower closing costs, he said, adding that Trump could consider tariff exemptions for certain construction materials.
During his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump said he would address the housing crisis by making federal land available for housing development and by slashing regulations. He has also argued that the Fed’s high interest rates have hurt the housing market as he has attempted to pressure the central bank to cut rates.
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