HUD Could Cut Staff by Up to 50% in DOGE Purge 

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development could be on the brink of losing up to half of its staff as part of a wider federal government purge led by Elon Musk‘s DOGE task force, according to multiple reports.

President Donald Trump‘s administration is aiming to cut HUD’s 9,600 workforce by around 50%, with some of the agency’s divisions potentially facing even more drastic layoffs of 75% of higher, according to NPR, citing a HUD employee with direct knowledge of the matter and a union leader. 

HUD representatives have not addressed the reports of plans for mass layoffs. Realtor.com® has reached out to HUD seeking comment.

HUD Secretary Scott Turner, fresh off his Senate confirmation earlier this month, said in a statement on Feb. 13 that he has launched his own Department of Government Efficiency task force to “eliminate waste, fraud and abuse.”

“HUD will be detailed and deliberate about every dollar spent to serve rural, tribal and urban communities,” Turner said. “Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, we are no longer in a business-as-usual posture and the DOGE task force will play a critical role in helping to identify and eliminate waste, fraud and abuse and ultimately better serve the American people.”

Turner also bragged that he and his team have already identified more than $260 million in savings “and we have more to accomplish.”

Meanwhile, Musk’s own DOGE squad reportedly has been busy trying to root out what it considers to be government waste at HUD.

According to reporting by Politico, Musk’s aides have been holding regular meetings at HUD headquarters to go over the department’s budget with an eye for possible layoffs. 

DOGE’s official X account posted last Friday that “$1.9 billion of HUD money was just recovered after being misplaced during the Biden administration due to a broken process.”

The anticipated HUD layoffs are part of a broader crusade led by Musk’s DOGE, which has already forced out thousands of federal workers across nearly a dozen agencies in the first month of Trump’s second term in office. 

What does HUD do?

Created as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty in 1965, HUD was charged with addressing America’s housing needs, improving communities, and enforcing fair housing laws, according to its website.

More than 4.3 million low-income families currently rely on HUD to provide them with affordable housing through various means, including public housing, rental subsidies, and voucher programs.

HUD also plays a major role in supporting homeownership among low- and middle-income families through the Federal Housing Administration, which insures mortgages for homes and other properties, including hospitals.  

Since its inception in 1934, FHA has insured more than 40 million home loans, according to its website.

Which sectors of HUD could be at risk?

The fate of the FHA remains unclear at this time, with some news outlets suggesting that the mortgage insurer could be looking at only minor cuts. Meanwhile, Bloomberg Law is reporting that the agency could lose up to 40% of its workforce.

Other divisions of HUD could see even more drastic reductions, with 3 out of every 4 workers potentially facing layoffs, according to the union official who spoke to NPR. 

A HUD employee speaking to the outlet on condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation said their colleagues seemed visibly shaken by the “shocking” and “drastic” planned layoffs. 

If Turner and Musk move ahead with the cuts, half of HUD’s field offices could be shuttered nationwide, according to Antonio Gaines, president of HUD Council 222 of the American Federation of Government Employees.

Gaines also told NPR that HUD offices that oversee homelessness programs, disaster recovery, affordable housing, civil rights laws, and housing research could be on the chopping block. 

Alarmed Democrats demand halt to HUD cuts

The looming layoffs at HUD have set off a wave of panic through ranking Democrats on the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, both of New York, joined others on Sunday in sending a letter to Turner, warning him that cutting staff at HUD could jeopardize the agency’s ability to address the nation’s housing crisis and serve the needs of the most vulnerable groups, including homeless veterans and seniors.

“We are deeply alarmed and troubled by reports that you terminated hundreds of probationary employees on Friday and are planning to cut the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD’s) workforce by 50 percent or nearly 4,300 staff,” the senators wrote.

The letter called on Turner to pump the brakes on any further staff cuts, warning that additional workforce reductions would worsen the housing crisis and possibly undermine HUD’s critical functions, such as disaster recovery.

“Hastily gutting HUD’s workforce will inevitably lead to costly delays, and many housing projects will fall apart completely, only making our current housing crisis worse,” the lawmakers wrote. “We urge you to immediately stop any additional cuts to HUD’s workforce.”