What The Biggest Housing Law In Decades Means for Buyers and Renters

• 11:18 AM EDT

by UrbanTurf Staff

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Congress just passed the most sweeping housing legislation in decades — and depending on where you sit in the market, it could reshape your options in meaningful ways. 

The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act cleared the Senate and the House of Representatives last week, and now heads to President Trump's desk, though Trump abruptly canceled a signing ceremony after demanding Congress first pass a separate voter ID bill. If and when it is signed, here's what it would mean for the different corners of the market.

For prospective homebuyers, the bill offers several targeted tools to make getting into a home less daunting. A new FHA pilot program would expand access to small-dollar mortgages, potentially adjusting loan terms and costs and offering direct grants to cover closing costs. The legislation also takes aim at appraisal bias. Mortgage lenders would be required to maintain procedures allowing borrowers to request a second appraisal or reconsideration of value if they believe their home has been unfairly assessed. The bill's most headline-grabbing provision directly addresses large institutional investors — defined as entities controlling at least 350 single-family homes — who would be prohibited from purchasing additional single-family homes under the new bill. 

For existing homeowners, the bill's practical benefits are more diffuse. A HUD pilot program would support state, local, and tribal whole-home repair programs, providing grants and forgivable loans to homeowners and landlords for repairs and modifications. The bill also takes steps to cut the regulatory red tape that has kept new housing off the market and put upward pressure on property values by streamlining environmental reviews under NEPA and creating competitive grants tied to local zoning reform, measures that could gradually ease supply constraints in land-constrained metros. 

Renters are also a focus of the legislation, though in more indirect ways. The bill establishes a HUD renter outreach resource to assist tenants in properties owned by large institutional investors navigate landlord disputes. For renters in the Housing Choice Voucher program, the bill would streamline inspections to make it faster and easier for voucher holders to access housing in communities of their choice. 

Whether the bill becomes law — and how quickly its provisions take effect — remains an open question as long as the signing ceremony remains in limbo.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/what_the_biggest_housing_law_in_decades_means/24768.