The US Senate approved the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act by 85 votes to five, sending a negotiated housing package to the House of Representatives. The unusually wide margin reflected bipartisan concern over housing affordability and the shortage of homes available to buyers and renters.
The measure combines work previously undertaken in both chambers. Senators passed an earlier version in March, while the House adopted its own version in May. Banking and financial-services leaders then reached a bicameral agreement, creating the text endorsed by the Senate. House members were expected to consider that compromise next.
At the center of the bill is an effort to increase housing supply. Its more than 45 provisions include steps to reduce regulatory obstacles, accelerate some environmental reviews for affordable developments and establish an innovation fund for communities that add homes. It would also revise chassis rules for manufactured housing, expand access to that type of home, support housing opportunities for veterans and seek to improve mortgage availability.
The package would restrict purchases of certain single-family homes by institutional investors. One provision described in reporting would bar an investor from buying additional single-family properties after its holdings reach 350 homes. Supporters argue that reducing competition from large buyers could give individual purchasers a better chance in tight markets. The proposal also includes pilot programs connected to home-improvement grants and planning for affordable housing.
Republican Senator Tim Scott, who chairs the Senate Banking Committee, presented the measure as the result of years of work on supply, costs and homeownership. Senator Elizabeth Warren, the committee's leading Democrat, emphasized the breadth of the supply provisions and the restrictions on private-equity purchases. In the House, Republican committee chair French Hill and ranking Democrat Maxine Waters both welcomed the compromise, while Waters described it as progress rather than a complete answer to the housing crisis.
The Senate vote did not enact the package. The House still had to approve the agreed text before it could go to the president. The strong vote nevertheless marked a notable instance of cooperation during an election year, when affordability was expected to remain a central issue for voters.
