Washington (AP) The Bush administration's top housing official is resigning at a time when the housing industry is embroiled in crisis.

Housing and urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson announced today he is quitting. His resignation will take effect on April 18th.

Jackson is under criminal investigation and has been fending off allegations of cronyism and favoritism involving HUD contractors for the past two years. He did not mention the probe in his statement today.

Instead, Jackson said he needs time to attend to personal and family matters.

The nation's housing industry is in a crisis so serious that it has imperiled the nation's credit markets and led to a major economic slowdown.