For the first time in its 75-year history, the National Association of Home Builders has a Connecticut-based member running the show, and his focus on affordable housing has garnered attention from President Donald Trump.

Attorney Gregory Ugalde, president and chief legal officer at Torrington-based T&M Building Co., has worked in the housing industry for the past 25 years, including nearly 20 as a member of the NAHB board. On assuming the role of chairman in February, he announced the theme of his term would be housing affordability, a subject that has taken him to communities in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, including three recent trips to the White House.