The US Senate voted 85-5 to pass the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, a sweeping bipartisan bill designed to reanimate the housing market through regulatory reform and new grants and programs.
The bill offers more than 45 different provisions, ranging from expanding the federal definition of manufactured housing to rolling back some regulations on permitting. Also included in the bill are new federal incentives for local governments to increase housing construction and a new process to streamline environmental reviews that often delay affordable housing construction.
Furthermore, the bill also restricts large investors from buying new single-family homes. An earlier version of the bill that would have required corporate entities that create single-family housing to sell their properties seven years after construction – that was removed when the bill was considered by the House of Representatives.
This version of the bill will now go back to the House for a vote. If approved, the legislation will be sent to the White House, where President Trump has said he would sign it.
However, 25 House Republicans have issued a warning they would vote against the bill unless the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, also known as the SAVE America Act, is passed by the Senate and sent with the housing bill.
“The Senate cannot keep obstructing President Trump’s agenda while ignoring election integrity,” said Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) in a social media post. “I call on my fellow colleagues to stand firm and honor their pledge.”
Mortgage Bankers Association President and CEO Bob Broeksmit welcomed the Senate vote, stating, “The legislation preserves many of the hard-fought policy priorities that MBA has advocated for throughout this debate and will increase HUD’s multifamily loan limits for the first time since 2003, reduce barriers to development and increase housing supply, modernize federal housing programs, and expand access to affordable mortgage credit. We welcome the House leadership’s plans to consider the bill this week and urge swift passage so it can be sent to President Trump for signature as soon as possible. Enactment of these reforms would expand housing opportunities, lower costs, help more Americans achieve and sustain homeownership, and support a healthier, more affordable rental housing market for families across the country.”
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