HUD staffing cuts create delays for housing program partners, GAO reports

According to a GAO audit, HUD’s workforce shrank by about 29% from December 2024 to 2025, leaving the agency with roughly 6,300 employees, many of whom departed through a deferred resignation program after decades of service. Stakeholders from 20 housing organizations said the cuts have hampered communication, with grant recipients unsure of their HUD contacts and response times stretching from same-day to up to 30 days.

One public housing agency reported a three-month inability to access HUD’s grant and subsidy system, forcing it to dip into reserve funds for salaries and utilities while contractors went unpaid. HUD has proposed IT upgrades, a unified grants platform, and a service-delivery improvement initiative, yet it has not responded to GAO inquiries about their status. The department also began relocating most headquarters staff from Washington, D.C., to Alexandria, Va., a move contested by the District of Columbia in a lawsuit over lack of congressional approval.