Carson seeks more private sector involvement in housing

WASHINGTON – Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson said Monday that he will take stock of agency programs to determine their effectiveness and enact policies that invite more private capital into the housing market.

During a town hall meeting with HUD employees, Carson was asked how the Federal Housing Administration manufactured housing program could help provide affordable housing.

"We don't necessarily have to always depend on the government and government financing," Carson said. "There is a lot more money outside the government than in the government. Although there are some people who want to change that. I won’t get into that. Providing opportunities that are win-win situations – that is now we get more of the private sector involved in the governmental programs."

HUD Secretary Ben Carson
Ben Carson, secretary of U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) nominee for President-elect Donald Trump, waits to begin a Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee confirmation hearing in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, Jan. 12, 2017. Carson said housing regulations are too onerous and lead to inequality and local land-use rules that limit density in segregated neighborhoods have slowed integration. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

The new HUD secretary pledged to hold more town hall meetings and he urged the different divisions in the department to get to know each other. "The more we know each other, the more effective we are going to be as an organization," Carson said.

He also said he was planning a listening tour starting in Detroit to get input on how HUD programs are working.

"We are going to analyze why things work and why they don’t work," he said. "It has been very effective for me throughout my medical career."

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