Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
To address the United States’ acute housing shortage, Congress recently passed a landmark piece of legislation designed to encourage the construction of new homes.
The problem is that President Trump’s crackdown on immigration has taken aim at the work force required to build those homes.
Ronda Kaysen, who covers housing for The New York Times, explains how the U.S. housing industry became so dependent on immigrant labor.
Guest: Ronda Kaysen (nytimes.com/by/ronda-kaysen) , a real estate reporter for The New York Times who covers the intersection of housing and society.
Background reading:
• Where did all the American-born roofers go (nytimes.com/2026/01/14/upshot/home-construction-roofers-immigration.html) ?
• Here’s what is in the housing bill (nytimes.com/2026/07/11/business/economy/housing-bill-affordability.html) that just became law.
Photo: Philip Cheung for The New York Times
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily (nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily) . Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily (nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily) . Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts (nytimes.com/podcasts) or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
To address the United States’ acute housing shortage, Congress recently passed a landmark piece of legislation designed to encourage the construction of new homes.
The problem is that President Trump’s crackdown on immigration has taken aim at the work force required to build those homes.
Ronda Kaysen, who covers housing for The New York Times, explains how the U.S. housing industry became so dependent on immigrant labor.
Guest: Ronda Kaysen (nytimes.com/by/ronda-kaysen) , a real estate reporter for The New York Times who covers the intersection of housing and society.
Background reading:
• Where did all the American-born roofers go (nytimes.com/2026/01/14/upshot/home-construction-roofers-immigration.html) ?
• Here’s what is in the housing bill (nytimes.com/2026/07/11/business/economy/housing-bill-affordability.html) that just became law.
Photo: Philip Cheung for The New York Times
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily (nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily) . Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily (nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily) . Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts (nytimes.com/podcasts) or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
