Former Housing Commissioner Frank Cassidy Returns To Walker & Dunlop

The Department of Housing and Urban Development’s former top mortgage insurance official is heading back to a familiar setting after leaving the Trump administration.

Frank Cassidy.
Courtesy of Walker & Dunlop
Frank Cassidy

Just over a month after stepping down from his roles as assistant secretary for housing at HUD and commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration, Frank Cassidy has rejoined Walker & Dunlop as a senior managing director. He previously served in that position before his 15-month tenure with HUD and the FHA.

Cassidy will advise Walker & Dunlop clients on FHA and government-sponsored enterprise financing strategies as well as how to navigate the changing policy and capital markets environment.

"Frank returns to Walker & Dunlop at a defining moment in the housing industry," Sheri Thompson, Walker & Dunlop executive vice president and head of affordable housing, said in a statement. "Our country continues to face a significant housing shortage, and collaboration between the public and private sectors will be essential to delivering more affordable and workforce housing."

Cassidy joined HUD in April 2025 and was confirmed by the Senate in December. After more than a year of managing the FHA's mortgage insurance programs, Cassidy resigned on June 1.

He had been on an extended leave of absence due to family matters prior to his exit from the roles, Politico reported.

Cassidy joined HUD right after the birth of his daughter and had been commuting between Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., for the last year. He said in a LinkedIn post announcing his exit from the federal roles that he was looking forward to spending more time with his family.

"After an incredibly rewarding chapter in public service, I look forward to spending more time with my wife and our young daughter back home in Philadelphia while returning to the private sector, where I can continue to support the creation and preservation of housing," Cassidy said in a statement sent to Bisnow. "I look forward to using my experience to help clients navigate these loan programs and how they can best serve our communities."

As FHA commissioner and assistant secretary for housing, Cassidy oversaw the FHA's roughly $2T single-family, multifamily and healthcare mortgage insurance portfolio. During his tenure, HUD reduced all FHA multifamily mortgage insurance premiums to the statutory minimum of 25 basis points, streamlined the Green Mortgage Insurance Premium category and its reporting requirements, and launched the Section 232 "express lane" initiative.

Cassidy also managed HUD's multifamily assisted housing portfolio.

During his previous nearly six-year tenure with Walker & Dunlop, Cassidy helped grow the firm’s FHA lending platform.

Cassidy began his career at Oppenheimer & Co. in 2011, followed by stints at Berkeley Point Capital and Newmark Knight Frank before initially joining Walker & Dunlop in August 2019, according to his LinkedIn profile.

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