Credit unions positioned to help solve housing affordability

October 21, 2025

Congress can take several actions to improve housing affordability, some of which were outlined in a letter from America’s Credit Unions to a Senate Banking subcommittee Monday. The comments were sent for the record of a subcommittee hearing on housing policy scheduled for today. 

In the letter, America’s Credit Unions President/CEO Jim Nussle thanked the committee for advancing the Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream (ROAD) to Housing Act (S. 2651) in July and made several recommendations to allow credit unions to further address housing affordability. 

These include:

  • Advancing legislation to:
    1. Include credit unions in the definition of “community financial institution” for purposes of Federal Home Loan Bank membership. Committee member Sen. Catherine Corte Masto, D-Nev., has introduced this legislation in a previous Congress.
    2. Give credit unions the flexibility to offer longer loan terms and lower monthly payments to their members, based on legislation from a previous Congress from committee Chair Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Cortez Masto.
    3. Provide government-backed, flexible financing options to help homeowners of modest means construct accessory dwelling units (ADUs), based on a bipartisan House bill, the Supporting Upgraded Property Projects and Lending for Yards (SUPPLY) Act (H.R. 4479).
  • Expanding the ability for all credit unions to add underserved areas to their fields of membership would improve access to housing and reduce gaps in homeownership rates.  

Read the full letter