Long awaited by the industry, the House officially voted Tuesday night by a vote of 358-32, to pass the updated and amended version of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, an omnibus housing bill that now heads to President Donald Trump’s desk for final passage.
The sprawling, bipartisan bill, which has been characterized as a landmark step for federal housing action, comes with many provisions, but one of its major goals is to spur housing construction through incentive programs, federal zoning guidelines and adjusting rules around the building of manufactured homes.
Real estate industry associations, including the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) and National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), have supported the legislation. NAR described the legislation “one of the most significant bipartisan housing packages Congress has considered in decades” and has actively lobbied to ensure it addresses association needs.
“America’s housing shortage and affordability challenges demand action. The cost of building a new home has increased dramatically, with regulatory costs alone adding more than $131,000 to the price of a new home today. This legislation helps reduce barriers to building, modernize housing programs and creates more opportunities for homeownership,” said Shannon McGahn, NAR executive vice president and chief advocacy officer in a statement following the Senate’s 87-8 vote to proceed on the bill.
Additionally, on June 18 at the 2026 Realtors® Legislative Meetings in Washington, D.C., (attended by RISMedia), NAR President Kevin Brown spoke positively of both the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act as “one of the most significant bipartisan housing packages Congress has considered in years,” as well as industry advocacy for housing that has shepherded the bill.
“This momentum is a result of more than a year of sustained advocacy by Realtors® across the country. Our federal political coordinators, state, local associations and advocacy team have worked tirelessly to keep housing at the forefront of the national conversation to build bipartisan support for meaningful solutions. The strong support is both in both chambers reflecting growing consensus that America’s a need for more homes, greater affordability, more pathways to homeownership,” said Brown.
“This landmark legislation would expand housing opportunities for buyers and renters, strengthen homeownership and help tackle the affordability challenges facing communities nationwide,” said NAHB Chair Bill Owens in a statement around the same time as McGahn.
Following the Senate’s passage of the bill on Monday, June 22, Realtor.com® Senior Economist Joel Berner spoke to how this bill addressed the housing supply gap, brought about by “a structural shortage of homes that has been building for more than a decade,” which is also leaving behind younger generations on homeownership and building generational wealth.
“Washington can help set the tone through incentives tied to permit outcomes and zoning reform, and the need is clear: a recent National Association of Home Builders study found regulation accounts for $131,734 of the price of a new single-family home, or 26.4% of the final cost,” said Berner. “If lawmakers want to make homeownership more attainable in a durable way, the most effective step is to remove barriers that keep homes from being built.”
Berner pointed to state-level action on housing affordability as proof of “why supply-side action is so important” in his comments:
“States in the South and Midwest lead on affordability and homebuilding, while many states in the West and Northeast, where zoning and land-use rules tend to be more restrictive, continue to lag. Just seven Southern and Western states accounted for more than half of all new-home permits in 2025, underscoring that places making it easier to build are doing more to create attainable paths to homeownership.”
One piece of the bill that had come under industry criticism was limits placed on institutional investors, including a requirement for large investors to sell homes after a seven year period of ownership. It was argued that this law would discourage the construction of build-to-rent properties.
This provision was toned down (including a removal of the required seven year divestiture timeline) in the version of the bill passed by the U.S. House in May 2026. This move attracted praise from the NAHB for “(ensuring) single-family built-to-rent communities owned by institutional investors, including communities financed with the Housing Credit for low-income households, remain a viable source of critically needed supply.”
This was just one piece of the larger back and forth regarding this legislation and its journey to passage. In October 2025, the Senate passed an omnibus bill titled the ROAD to Housing Act. Rather than voting on this bill, the House subsequently introduced its own housing package, titled the Housing for the 21st Century Act, and subsequently passed it in February 2026.
Upon its passage and movement to the Senate, the Senate then folded the ROAD to Housing Act into the bill, retitled the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act to reflect that. After passing the Senate in March, it was sent to the House for reconciliation—due to the differences between the text of the House and Senate versions—and the House ultimately passed it again in May by a 396-13, suggesting overwhelming and bipartisan support.
