The Community Reinvestment Act Generated More than $430 Billion in Private Investment in 2024, Nearly Six Times the Combined Federal Housing and Small Business Budget
CRA Impact Report from the Center for Affordable Housing Lending documents the law’s role in financing homeownership, small businesses, and affordable housing across the country.
WASHINGTON, D.C.–The Center for Affordable Housing Lending, in partnership with the National Association of Affordable Housing Lenders (NAAHL), today released Incentive to Impact, a comprehensive analysis of how the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) leverages private investment to support affordable housing, homeownership, and small businesses across the United States.
The report finds that in 2024 alone, CRA incentivized more than $430 billion in loans and investments in low- and moderate-income communities. This is nearly six times the combined federal budgets of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the USDA Rural Housing Service, the Small Business Administration (SBA), and the CDFI Fund.
“The numbers tell a clear story: CRA is one of the most powerful and cost-effective tools we have for expanding economic opportunity in communities across the country,” said Sarah Brundage, President and CEO of NAAHL and the Center for Affordable Housing Lending. “As policymakers work to expand homeownership, grow the housing supply, and support small businesses, this report shows the essential role that CRA plays in getting that done today.”
Key findings:
Homeownership: In 2024, banks financed nearly 504,000 CRA-qualifying mortgage loans valued at roughly $100 billion. These loans averaged less than $199,000, compared to the nearly $378,000 average for all mortgage loans. This helps lower-income families access homeownership and home repair financing that is otherwise hard to find.
Small businesses and farms: CRA-qualifying loans provided $162.8 billion in credit to small businesses and farms, representing 55% of small business lending and 70% of small farm lending by banks that year.
Affordable housing and economic development: CRA-incentivized investors provided 80% of Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) equity and nearly 98% of New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) equity in 2024, making CRA the driving force behind the nation’s primary affordable housing production and economic development programs.
Rural impact: More than 55,000 CRA-qualifying mortgages went to homeowners in rural communities in 2024. Banks with less than $10 billion in assets made nearly half of rural CRA-qualifying mortgage loans.
Decade of investment: Between 2015 and 2024, banks made more than $1.4 trillion in CRA-qualifying community development loans and investments benefitting low- and moderate-income people and communities.
The report draws on publicly available data from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). It is authored by the Center for Affordable Housing Lending.
The full report, key findings one-pager, and community impact profiles are available at NAAHL.org/CRA.
About the Center for Affordable Housing Lending
The Center for Affordable Housing Lending is the nonprofit policy research partner to NAAHL, dedicated to policy development and solutions-centered research on affordable housing and community development financing.
About NAAHL
Founded in 1990, NAAHL is the national alliance of the leading investors and lenders in affordable housing and community development — bringing together banks, CDFIs, and other public, private, and nonprofit lenders. NAAHL's member network uniquely represents the public-private partnership that makes possible affordable housing and community development financing in America.