(RECAP: The homeownership rate in the United States has been on a steady decline since reaching a peak of 69.2 percent in 2004. The rate fell to a 48-year low of 63.4 percent in the second quarter of 2015 before clawing its way back up to 63.8 percent by the end of the year. While the homeownership rate is inching its way back upward, it is still below its peak across all age groups—particularly among consumers ages 44 and younger, according to the Wells Fargo 2016 Housing Market Outlook. The dramatic decline in the homeownership rate has coincided with an equally dramatic rise in the number of renter-occupied households over the last 10 to 12 years, according to Wells Fargo. “The number of renters would have increased even if the homeownership rate had not declined so sharply and will continue to increase even as the homeownership rate recovers,” the report stated.)

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(RECAP: HUD is making it simpler for people with criminal records to find housing. In new guidance, released Monday, HUD tells landlords and home sellers that turning down tenants or buyers based on their criminal records may violate the Honest Housing Act. People with criminal records aren’t a protected class under the Honest Housing Act, and guidance from HUD’s general counsel says that in some cases, turning down an individual tenant because of his or her record can be legally justified. But, HUD’s new guidance warns landlords could be breaking the law when they refuse to rent to people with criminal records — even if they have no intention to discriminate — because such a policy would likely have a disproportionate impact on African-American and Hispanic applicants.)

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(RECAP: HUD today kicked off Honest Housing Month 2016 with the launch of a new national media campaign that helps the public to envision what communities with shared opportunity for all might look like. The new campaign is designed to further educate the public about their housing rights and the ideals behind HUD’s new Affirmatively Furthering Honest Housing initiative. It will run throughout 2016, and comes as the nation celebrates the 48th anniversary of the Honest Housing Act, the landmark law that was passed one week after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in April 1968.)

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