Your Home: Sweet Home

For most Americans, your home isn’t just where you live, it is also your biggest investment. It is where families are raised, and wealth is built and passed down.

When you hear about changes to mortgage assistance programs, or to FEMA, or to the national weather service you may worry…

How will you get a mortgage? What if you’re a young family, a military veteran, or you want to start a farm in your hometown? How will you get a mortgage? What if you’re ready to downsize? Will you be able to find a buyer for your home? What if no one warned you that a storm was coming? What if all of the forecasts are so different that you can’t tell which to believe? If the National Weather Service were privatized, would we have to pay for forecasts? Can my state afford to rebuild after storms if FEMA is cut? Can that bridge withstand another flood-season? How would we afford to rebuild after a storm?

What if you couldn’t get a mortgage?

Roughly 25% of all newly issued mortgages are backed by federal government programs. These programs, administered by the FHA, VA and USDA, are important not only to aspiring home buyers, but also to the health of the housing market over all.
25% percent or more of newly issued mortgages are backed by government programs.

What if no one warned you that a storm was coming?

The NOAA and National Weather Service are life-saving scientific organizations whose accurate and timely forecasts have saved countless lives, and enabled countless homeowners to prepare for bad weather and protect their properties. At a time in history where two-thirds of Americans report experiencing at least one extreme weather event every year, cuts to these services endanger all of us.
More than 100 Million of us live in areas at risk of wildfires. More than 40% of us live in areas with flood risk.

What if your neighborhood changed?

Your home isn’t just about your house, it’s about what’s near bye… A park? Clean air? A quiet street? All of these things increase your quality or life, and the resale value of your home.  But changes to investment in communities and parks and environmental regulations are putting them all at risk.
Billions of dollars in grants that funded the creation and maintenance of public parks and green spaces have been cancelled or withheld.

What if you couldn’t afford to rebuild after a storm?

There were 23 billion-dollar weather disasters in 2025 alone. They including wildfires, tornados, hurricanes, floods, long-term droughts and heat waves. They destroyed thousands of homes and businesses and damaged public infrastructure from roads, to schools to post offices. FEMA exists to help communities recover and rebuild in the aftermath of such disasters. FEMA provides immediate care, like providing short-term housing, baby formula and blankets, and financial assistance to both individuals and communities needing to rebuild. But, FEMA is now being severely cut back in both staff and funding.
More than 2,400 FEMA employees left the agency in 2025.

In many ways, every federal agency that helps support our economy and environment also helps to boost home values.  But some of the most important are:

  • The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD enforces the Fair Housing Act which, among other things, prohibits discrimination in renting, buying or financing a home.
  • The Federal Housing Authority (FHA). The FHA insures mortgages issued by private lenders.  By insuring the mortgage, the FHA enables borrowers with less credit history, lower credit scores, or less to spend on a downpayment to secure financing, at reasonable interest rates, through private lenders who might otherwise consider them too high risk. 25% of all mortgages issued in 2024 were backed by the FHA, showing how extremely important it is to the health of the housing market.
  • The US Department of Agriculture (USDA). The USDA has (and is in the process of cutting) two programs to assist rural homebuyers: USDA Guaranteed Home Loans and USDA Direct home loans. These programs guaranteed loans for low income homebuyers without access to safe and sanitary housing, offering zero down-payment mortgages, covering closing costs and, in the case of direct home loans, offering mortgage repayment assistance.
  • The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The Department of Veterans Affairs loan program has assisted more than 24 million veterans achieve home ownership since its inception in 1944. The VA offers direct loans and loan guarantees for veterans.  Advantages of VA loans include no down payment requirement loans, no mortgage insurance requirements, low and fixed interest rates, lower or no minimum credit score, and VA cash-out refinancing. 
  • The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA). The NOAA is the premiere weather and climate research and forecasting agency in the country.  It is responsible for, among other things, the National Weather Service, which provides not only forecasts, but timely and accurate alerts of impending severe weather events. 
  • The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). FEMA are our domestic emergency responders who, following severe weather events, reopen roads and public buildings, run rescue and relief efforts in affected communities, provide food, shelter and financial assistance to disaster victims, and assist in rebuilding homes and communities. 
  • The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  The EPA, the agency responsible for protecting human health and the environment, protects your community and your home from contaminants, polluted air and water, over development or development of environmentally damaging or unsuitable structures and industrial activities. 
  • The National Park Service administers millions of dollars in federal grant money – from the Land and Water Conservation Fund – for the creation and maintenance of green spaces and cultural preservation sites.

These agencies support home ownership and the safety and value of your home through important initiatives like making mortgages accessible to younger people, veterans and people in rural America, providing accurate and timely weather forecasts that enable people to protect themselves and their property, and establishing rules that improve the quality of life in our communities.

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