HUD Secretary Scott Turner told Fox News Digital that illegal immigration and housing costs are linked and that the administration is taking immediate policy steps to try to bring prices and rents down. Turner cited a Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas working paper as part of the evidence he said supports the administration’s approach, and he framed a three-part strategy to ease affordability pressures.
The administration’s approach combines tighter enforcement at the border, executive orders to remove regulatory barriers to affordable housing construction, and steps to expand mortgage access so more buyers can obtain financing. Turner presented these as complementary tools intended to reduce demand pressures, raise supply and widen access to homeownership.
Turner interview and the claim on illegal immigration and housing costs
In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, Turner said higher housing demand tied to unauthorized workers has been one contributor to rising home prices and rents. Speaking from the Great American State Fair, he said, “Here in America, we prioritize American people and American people only,” and argued the policy mix aims to protect domestic affordability.
Turner placed immigration enforcement and supply-side reforms side by side. He described enforcement as intended to limit demand growth from unauthorized inflows, while regulatory changes are meant to boost the pipeline of new housing. These are administration positions rather than settled causal conclusions.
What the Dallas Fed paper found
The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas working paper Turner cited reports that a 1 percentage point increase in the share of unauthorized immigrant workers was associated with about a 2.2% rise in home prices and a 1.4% rise in rents in the study’s models. The paper’s results are presented as statistical associations estimated within the authors’ framework.
Importantly, the paper and independent economists caution that association does not prove causation. Housing markets are shaped by many factors simultaneously, including supply constraints, interest rate conditions, local zoning and permitting rules, construction costs and household formation trends. Those forces can amplify or offset demand-related effects tied to population changes.
Policy steps the administration is taking
Turner described recent executive actions the White House says will reduce construction costs and speed new housing production. Those actions include orders to remove regulatory barriers at the federal level, and directives meant to encourage localities to ease zoning and permitting obstacles. The administration also points to guidance and programs intended to expand mortgage credit to more potential buyers.
The administration argues that cutting bureaucratic red tape will lower builders’ costs and increase the flow of new units, which should put downward pressure on prices and rents over time. Officials acknowledge that those supply-side changes typically take months to years to translate into materially higher inventory.
How allies and critics frame the expected impact
Republican allies endorse the strategy, saying that easing land-use rules and permitting requirements will expand supply and relieve price pressure. Turner summarized the view: “That’s what we’re doing now, we are easing the regulatory environment, bringing the cost down, raising the supply so builders can build and homeowners can buy.”
Critics and many outside economists warn that supply-side reforms can be slow to change on-the-ground inventory. They also note that expanding mortgage access, while it can increase buying power, does not on its own lower construction costs or speed deliveries. Observers emphasize that any immigration-related demand effect is one component in a broader, complex housing market.
What to watch next
Near-term indicators to monitor include the formal text of the executive orders and their implementation timelines, any changes to local permitting and zoning rules, and monthly housing starts and building permit reports. Those data will offer an early read on whether supply-side measures are taking hold.
Other signals include mortgage application volumes, inventory levels in local markets and Federal Reserve policy on interest rates. Together, those measures will help determine whether policy shifts can increase supply and improve affordability, and how quickly any effects may appear.
Source attribution
Fox News Digital interview: Fox News Digital.
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas working paper: Dallas Fed working paper (PDF). The paper’s estimates are statistical associations reported by the authors; they do not establish definitive causal relationships.
Readers should treat the Dallas Fed results as one piece of evidence among many. Housing affordability depends on multiple, interacting factors, so policymakers and analysts will need several quarters of data to judge whether the administration’s combined enforcement and supply measures meaningfully affect prices and rents.
