(The Epoch Times)—The United States is on track to implement the first comprehensive housing legislation in decades.
For the past several years, housing affordability has been a significant subject across the country, with many young people struggling to achieve the dream of homeownership.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have tried to reverse the trend by advancing the 21st Century Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream (ROAD) to Housing Act of 2025.
Here is a look inside the sweeping housing package and the path to passage.
Inside the Act
While the current administration has examined strategies to expand access to the housing market, the bipartisan legislative initiative aims to bolster supply for middle-class families.
The bill’s main provision is a limit on institutional investors’ purchases of single-family homes.
Both chambers tweaked the proposal.
The Senate approved language that requires major investors who build single‑family rental homes to sell those properties within seven years.
The House’s version still aims to rein in Wall Street’s footprint in the single‑family market, but its latest draft eases the restrictions.
Lawmakers added wider exemptions for institutional buyers of newly constructed rentals, homes needing substantial renovation, and several other categories.
Other measures aim to facilitate more construction, including incentives to build more homes, convert abandoned buildings into housing, and modernize existing homes.
In addition, Washington bolstered eligible income limits for the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, a federal block-grant program that state and local governments use to build, maintain, and support affordable housing for low‑income households.
Officials created a Housing Supply Framework to enable best practices in state and local zoning and land use.
The legislative text also expands banks’ authority to make public‑welfare investments supporting affordable housing. The bill raises the cap for banks’ public welfare investments to 20 percent from 15 percent.
Lawmakers removed the permanent chassis requirement for manufactured homes. The long-standing federal rule required that manufactured homes be constructed on a permanent steel frame to qualify under the federal construction code.
It also includes the Modular Housing Production Act and other reforms to streamline the production of factory-built housing.
There was also some focus on the demand side of the equation. For example, the bill establishes incentives for mortgage lenders to originate small-dollar mortgages—typically under $100,000—to address the financing gap for low-cost homes. Additionally, Congress updated rules on appraisal standards and fees for these small-dollar loans.
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act includes reforms to Veterans Affairs (VA) housing policies. The major changes include expanding access to VA home loans, improving consumer protections for borrowers, and enhancing housing support for disabled and homeless veterans.
Congressional Path
Unlike other pieces of legislation, the housing affordability bill has moved quickly through Congress—something that President Donald Trump had requested.
House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill (R-Ark.) introduced legislation in December 2025. Two months later, it passed in the lower chamber by a vote of 390–9.
As it arrived in the upper chamber, senators made substitutions rather than take up the House bill. The amended legislation passed 89–10 and was sent back to the House, where it passed 396–13.
It will now be delivered to the Senate for final approval.
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said the bipartisan housing bill will provide relief for families nationwide.
“We worked closely with the White House and our colleagues in both chambers on a bill that puts families first and addresses the housing crisis,” they said in a May 20 joint statement.
“There’s still work to be done and we are committed to continuing to work with the White House and our colleagues in the House on a housing bill that can pass the Senate and get to the president’s desk.”
What the Industry Says
The housing industry widely lauded Congress for moving ahead with the legislation.
Shortly after the House passed the bill, the National Association of Home Builders noted that it addresses several problems facing Americans today, mainly housing shortages and affordability challenges.
“The bottom line is that the housing crisis is a supply problem,” Bill Owens, the group’s chairman, said in a statement.
“Congress can help by improving access to capital, strengthening workforce pipelines, expanding the availability of buildable lots and reducing excessive regulatory costs and permitting delays.
“If we want to make housing more attainable, we must make it easier and less expensive to build.”
Emily Cadik, CEO of the Affordable Housing Tax Credit Coalition, stated that increasing the banks’ public welfare investment cap to 20 percent will “unlock billions of dollars in new private investment.”
“Additional changes in the updated House legislation will further strengthen our ability to finance more affordable housing to address our nation’s immense need,” Cadik said in a statement.
The House passing the Senate’s amended version would both enhance housing supply and expand access to affordable mortgage credit, says Bob Broeksmit, president and CO of the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The legislation, he said, “will help advance meaningful housing affordability solutions for our nation’s homeowners and renters.”
