HUD finds billions in questionable rental assistance payments to tenants

A recent report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) found that billions of dollars of taxpayer funds under former President Joe Biden went to “questionable” rental assistance recipients.

Recipients include nearly 30,000 deceased renters and thousands of potential noncitizens, according to a copy of HUD’s “Agency Financial Report” for Fiscal Year 2025. New York Post.

HUD officials told the Post that the “large portion” of the funds went to New York, California and Washington, D.C., and deceased recipients received funds in all 50 states.

The department performed automation that compared the U.S. Treasury database with HUD records. The process revealed 30,054 deceased tenants who were either actively enrolled in rental assistance programs or received posthumous assistance. HUD’s report. The department likely found the problematic payments through its own internal financial review and analysis, according to the report.

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“Massive misuse of taxpayer dollars not only occurred under President Biden’s watch, but was effectively encouraged by his administration’s failure to implement strong financial controls that resulted in billions worth of potential improper payments,” HUD Secretary Scott Turner said in a statement to the Post. he said.

“HUD will continue to investigate the shocking results and take appropriate action to hold bad actors accountable,” he said. “Additionally, the Department is advancing efforts made during President Trump’s first administration to strengthen program integrity and ensure that taxpayer-funded assistance serves the vulnerable communities for which it is intended.”

A commuter walks in front of the Robert C. Weaver Federal Building, home to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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In fiscal year 2024, HUD distributed approximately $50 billion in federal rental assistance to nonfederal agencies; this includes $5.8 billion in what the report describes as “suspicious payments.”

HUD has flagged the Biden administration to instruct it to “push funds out the door with minimal oversight.” In the report, HUD alleges that the Biden administration failed to provide the department with the tools needed to verify whether agencies are applying “complex rules governing rental assistance.” The report also noted that HUD’s rental assistance programs “instill significant trust and accountability” in the nonfederal agencies that receive the funds.

HUD now needs to verify whether fraud has occurred and its extent before it can determine whether funding should be paused or canceled and whether criminal referrals are warranted.

President Donald Trump, left, and HUD Secretary Eric Scott Turner during a reception with Republican members of Congress in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, July 22, 2025. (Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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“HUD has processes and procedures in place to revoke or pause funding as part of efforts to hold bad actors accountable,” an official told the Post. “Additionally, the Department may issue criminal referrals and implement other enforcement measures after verifying that fraud has occurred.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to former HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge for comment.