Message From PD&R Leadership

Message From PD&R Leadership

HUD works in and with rural communities as a core part of our mission to foster strong neighborhoods; support quality, affordable homeownership opportunities; and promote self-sufficiency among all Americans. Since his confirmation in 2025, HUD Secretary Scott Turner has brought this commitment to the fore as he visits rural places and partners nationwide. His frequent call for HUD to support "rural, tribal, and urban" areas emphasizes the role HUD has played in these communities for decades.

HUD's focus on rural America reflects President Trump's commitment to increase prosper­ity for all Americans. Upon starting his second term, the president called on federal leaders to identify ways to "lower the cost of housing and expand housing supply." HUD is pulling many levers to deliver on this promise in rural areas, including through its efforts to ensure the transformative potential of Opportunity Zones. Created through the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and made permanent in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, Opportunity Zones are federally designated, economically distressed communities where new investments may be eligible for preferential tax treatment. With 40 percent of the original Opportunity Zones located in rural areas, there is great potential. Other HUD initiatives, including the Rural Capacity Building program and the HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing program, also are key to expanding housing to rural citizens.

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R) has long supported research into rural housing issues and generated data to support rural communities. Our core program parameters, including income limits and Fair Market Rents, support HUD programs in rural communities, and PD&R's formula support for disaster recovery is often focused on rural America. Produced in conjunction with the U.S. Census Bureau, the American Housing Survey (AHS) provides insights into housing conditions in rural America, and PD&R's Worst Case Housing Needs reports use AHS data to inform stakeholders about housing conditions nationwide, including U.S. rural areas. Furthermore, PD&R's current research on innovations in building technology can identify ways to lower building costs and expand housing options in rural com­munities. As an example, a PD&R-funded project in Nome, Alaska, is testing the feasibility of 3D-printing concrete homes in remote subarctic communities. Nome offers researchers an opportunity to innovate and meet the housing needs of rural residents.

This issue of Evidence Matters examines housing challenges in rural areas as well as the unique strengths found in rural communities. We explore the many definitions of "rural" that define who and what we see in this space. We also explore work being done at the state level in North Dakota, South Carolina, and Kansas — programs run by the people who know these places best. This issue of Evidence Matters is the first one published under my leadership as PD&R's princi­pal deputy assistant secretary, and I am happy that it is highlighting the needs of rural America.

— John Gibbs, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary