HUD ends FHA mortgages for illegal immigrants: 'Should benefit Americans who play by the rules'
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) terminated some mortgages for illegal immigrants in an effort to ensure federal home loans don't go to those living in the U.S. illegally.
HUD Secretary Scott Turner announced the move Wednesday, a day after news of a joint effort with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to focus on homeownership for Americans.
"Today, HUD terminated Biden's taxpayer-backed FHA mortgages for illegal aliens," Turner wrote on X. "American taxpayers will no longer subsidize open borders by offering home loans to those who enter our nation illegally."
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In another post, Turner said HUD-backed mortgages should benefit Americans "who play by the rules and work hard, not those who enter our country illegally."
"Today, HUD acted to protect the American Dream of homeownership," he wrote.
On Monday, Turner and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem signed a memo to end "wasteful misappropriation" of taxpayer-funded public housing resources going to illegal immigrants rather than U.S. citizens.
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The initiative will help with data sharing between the two agencies via newly established lines of communication, officials said. A news release said U.S. veterans stood to benefit from the move.
"American tax dollars should be used for the benefit of American citizens, especially when it comes to an issue as pressing as our nation’s housing crisis," Turner said Monday. "This new agreement will leverage resources, including technology and personnel, to ensure American people are the only priority when it comes to public housing.
"We will continue to work closely with DHS to maximize our resources and put American citizens first."
Roughly 9 million people live in subsidized housing across the country, according to HUD. About 59% of noncitizen households — those including green card holders or illegal immigrants — use one or more public assistance programs, costing taxpayers as much as $42 billion annually, according to the Center for Immigration Studies, a group that advocates for lower immigration levels.
Upon taking office, President Donald Trump called for greater oversight to stop illegal immigrants from accessing taxpayer-funded resources.
During the Biden administration, tens of millions of dollars were spent on housing for migrants, including for all-expense-paid stays at hotels for some.
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Some states, such as Pennsylvania and Arizona, passed measures during the Biden administration aimed at ensuring illegal immigrants do not take public housing resources from Americans who need them.
Fox News Digital's Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.