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Wells Fargo and NHC name ProdigyLink in Water Week reflections on housing affordability

4 min read

The Reducing Costs and Protecting Affordable Housing Through Better Water Management panel at Wells Fargo Water Week in Washington, DC, with Alex Jarrah of SAHF, Laura Sardilli of ProdigyLink, and Max Stewart of Mercy Housing

On October 25, 2026, the National Housing Conference (NHC) published Water Week Reflections: Why Water Resilience Matters for Housing Affordability, written by Sarah Bainton Kahn, Head of Housing Access and Affordability Philanthropy at Wells Fargo. The piece looks back at this year's Wells Fargo Water Week, including the Housing + Water convening in Washington, DC, and makes a case we share: water is a housing issue.

ProdigyLink appears in the article twice. Mercy Housing is named as one of the organizations supported by Wells Fargo's $1 million philanthropic investment, and will address rising water costs by putting ProdigyLink's prevention-first technology to work across a number of its properties. And our founder and CEO, Laura Sardilli, sat on the Water Week panel Reducing Costs and Protecting Affordable Housing Through Better Water Management, alongside Max Stewart of Mercy Housing and moderator Alex Jarrah of Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future (SAHF). Here is what the article covers and why it matters for affordable housing operators.

Water is a housing issue

The article opens by noting that housing affordability is usually discussed in terms of supply, financing, zoning, and development costs. Those are critical. But across the country, affordable housing providers are facing rising operating costs, and water increasingly shapes the cost of developing, preserving, operating, and insuring affordable housing. From leaking pipes and running toilets inside buildings to aging systems and extreme weather outside them, water finds its way into the budget. And when systems become strained or inefficient, those costs often find their way back to residents. Household water bills, the article notes, are rising faster than inflation.

One theme surfaced repeatedly at the Washington convening, which brought together leaders from housing, water, utilities, insurance, sustainability, finance, government, and the nonprofit sector: these challenges are deeply connected, and they are best addressed together.

Everyday indoor water damage drives insurance claims

The connection was clearest in the closing session on risk, insurance, and the future of housing preservation, featuring NHC, Housing Partnership Network, come dream. come build., and the Brookings Center for Community Uplift. Property insurance has quickly become one of the most pressing threats to housing affordability, and mission-driven developers operating on thin margins are feeling it first.

"Floods and storms get the headlines, but everyday indoor water damage, such as running toilets, leaking pipes, and failed water heaters, is far more likely to drive insurance claims. Because insurers price for risk, many of the most effective solutions to rising premiums are practical, preventable, and within reach."

That is the finding behind everything we build. The most common and costly water loss in multifamily housing does not announce itself. It runs quietly, between maintenance visits, until the bill or the claim arrives. Prevention first means stopping that waste automatically at the source, and reserving detection for where and when it matters.

A $1 million investment in water resilience

Wells Fargo funds and participates in NHC's Residential Property Insurance Collaborative (RPIC), which brings together housing advocates, researchers, lenders, and insurers to find a "third way" to manage rising insurance costs: identifying how investments like leak detection, better water management, and stronger construction translate into fewer claims and more affordable coverage, and how those costs should be shared.

That grant is part of a broader $1 million philanthropic investment in organizations that help affordable housing communities reduce operating costs, improve water management, address emerging insurance challenges, and preserve long-term affordability. The article lists the initiatives it supports:

  • Mercy Housing will address rising operator costs associated with water by leveraging ProdigyLink's prevention-first technology across a number of its properties.
  • Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future is advancing Fixing the OpEx Leak: Water Management in Affordable Housing, helping providers catch leaks early, lower utility bills, and prevent the water damage that drives insurance claims.
  • Project BRAVO in El Paso, Texas, is expanding families' access to safe, potable drinking water.
  • In Arizona, the Community Irrigation Revitalization Initiative is revitalizing aging irrigation infrastructure, improving water efficiency, expanding tree canopy, and reducing heat.

We are honored to be part of Mercy Housing's work under this investment. Mercy Housing is one of the nation's largest affordable housing organizations, and the rollout is exactly the kind of engagement the article describes: practical, preventable, and within reach.

Reducing costs through better water management

The Water Week panel Laura joined put operators and practitioners in the same conversation. Alex Jarrah, Energy and Sustainability Manager at SAHF, moderated. Max Stewart, Senior Environmental Analyst at Mercy Housing, brought the owner's perspective. Laura spoke to what we see across more than 20,000 installed devices: an average of 48% lower water and sewer costs, $512 saved per unit per year, and a 10-month payback, with savings that start at installation and require no action from the property team.

The article's closing thought is one we would sign:

"If we want affordable housing to remain affordable, we must pay attention to the systems that support it."

Every dollar that stops going down the drain stays available for residents and operations. That is how we protect the mission and math of affordable housing.

Read the article

The full piece is on NHC's site: Water Week Reflections: Why Water Resilience Matters for Housing Affordability. Our thanks to Sarah Bainton Kahn and Wells Fargo, to the National Housing Conference, to Alex Jarrah and SAHF, and to Max Stewart and the Mercy Housing team. Panel photo courtesy of the National Housing Conference.