Emerging and Evolving Data Trends Since COVID-19 Began

William M. Doerner
R. Kevin Winkler
Federal Housing Finance Agency

The analysis and conclusions are those of the authors alone and should not be represented or interpreted as conveying an official position, policy, analysis, opinion, or endorsement of either the Federal Housing Finance Agency or the U.S. government. Any errors or omissions are the sole responsibility of the authors.

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted society in a multitude of ways. In the United States, cases rose quickly and spread across the country in early 2020, which led to the declaration of a national emergency in March 2020. Local governments imposed lockdowns and began quarantine mandates that would partially conclude by that summer but restart multiple times over the next couple of years.

Various federal agencies enacted policies to promote the safety and soundness of their mission-driven activities. A challenge that arose in those early days was tracking how rapidly changing health concerns might lead to economic and prudential risks. Strong housing markets granted early and necessary stability for wavering macroeconomic conditions. An economic crisis was averted by providing debt payment relief and large-scale injections of financial liquidity. However, as conditions improved, other economic and sociopolitical dilemmas challenged decisionmakers to consider whether it was possible to return to prior circumstances or if we faced adapting to a “new normal.”