House gives final approval to bipartisan housing bill aimed at lowering costs | US domestic policy
While the House gave final approval Tuesday to a broad bipartisan bill aimed at lowering the cost of housing, lawmakers in both parties were eager to show progress on affordability issues ahead of this year’s midterm elections.
The 358-32 vote sent the bill to Donald Trump, who is expected to sign it at the Capitol on Wednesday. The Senate passed the legislation 85-5 on Monday.
The measure would reduce federal regulations, streamline environmental reviews, speed up the construction process and limit the influence of corporate landlords by limiting their ability to purchase single-family homes. This represents one of the most comprehensive efforts in recent years to increase housing supply and lower prices, as voter frustration over the cost of living remains high.
California Democrat Maxine Waters, who helped negotiate the bill, said the average age of first-time homebuyers is now 40 and rents have risen about 47% since the Covid-19 outbreak.
“Our country must do better, and we will do it today,” he said.
After months of negotiations, dozens of bills were cobbled together to create the final package, creating a rare moment of bipartisan solidarity in a congressional session plagued by bitter disagreements.
House financial services chairman French Hill, an Arkansas Republican who worked with Waters and the Senate on the bill, said Congress is coming together for the first time in years to make “measurable, accountable changes” to the nation’s housing laws.
He said the bill would “help build more homes to meet growing demand and make the American dream attainable.”
The legislation to be submitted to Trump would expand funding, encourage the development of “innovative housing” such as modular homes, require new tenant protections and advance programs aimed at ending homelessness.
It will also provide funding, including Community Development Block Grant money, to local governments that build more housing in places that exceed the average housing construction rate. This would provide new dollars for communities to convert abandoned infrastructure into housing and provide a framework for communities looking to reform outdated zoning regulations that often limit larger housing developments.
In addition, the bill would increase limits on the number of public housing units that can receive funding for renovation and establish a recovery program to help expedite funds for rebuilding communities after disaster.
The legislation does not include a Senate provision requiring investors to sell newly constructed homes within seven years.
Republicans and Democrats have embraced the bill as a way to show they are addressing the nation’s affordability crisis, driven in part by rising home prices due to a shortage of affordable housing. The U.S. housing market has been in a downturn dating back to 2022, when mortgage rates began climbing from pandemic-era lows.
Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes are trending near a 4 million annual pace through 2023; This is well below the historical norm of 5.2 million per year. Sales slowed last year to a 30-year low and have been stagnant so far this year, falling in January and February compared to the previous year.
While the President’s Economic Report in April revealed a shortage of 10 million homes, this month’s report from Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies found that existing home sales are at a three-decade low and inventories are rising due to high home purchasing costs. “As cost burdens continue to rise for both tenants and homeowners, assistance remains seriously inadequate,” the report said.
Although the average monthly rent in the U.S. has been falling for nearly three years, it was still 17.2% higher in May than before the pandemic, according to data from Realtor.com.
The legislation has broad support in the housing community, both from organizations representing homeowners and large property owners, as well as from groups that advocate for renters and low-income tenants.
It also brought Republicans and Democrats together; many of them noted the unusual level of bipartisanship ahead of the vote.
“We are actually doing something in this polarized and angry Congress,” said Democratic representative Jim Himes of Connecticut.
