Inman

Conference explores workforce housing shortage

Housing industry leaders will meet this week in Washington, D.C., to discuss the national shortage of affordable housing for working families. The event, “Close to Home: A Symposium on Workforce,” is slated for Wednesday at the National Housing Center on 15th Street, NW in Washington, D.C.

Sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders and Freddie Mac, the free, one-day conference is designed to examine and draw public attention to the housing crunch facing police officers, teachers, fire fighters, nurses and other key community workers.

Speakers include two former Department of Housing and Urban Development secretaries, as well as local and federal government officials, researchers and experts in housing finance. The symposium also will unveil new research on the housing needs of America’s working families.

Symposium speakers include Alfonso Jackson, Secretary of HUD; Bobby Rayburn, president, National Association of Home Builders; Richard F. Syron, chairman and CEO of Freddie Mac; Henry Cisneros, former Secretary of HUD; Jack Kemp, former Secretary of HUD; Nic Retsinas, director, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies; Charlie Lyons, immediate past president, National League of Cities; Barbara Lipman, research director, Center for Housing Policy; Carl Guardino, president and CEO, Silicon Valley Manufacturers Group; and Gary Garczynski, president, National Capital Land Development Co.

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