At his first State of the Union address of his second term last night, President Donald Trump had a lot he wanted to cover after a tumultuous first year in office. Clocking in at about an hour and 45 minutes, and over 10,000 words, Trump sprinkled plenty of personal anecdotes and free-wheeling storytelling into a speech largely focused on international affairs and economic policy, leaning into the bold rhetoric that has won him two terms in the White House.
What got very little attention was housing.
At a time when Democrats and Republicans have trouble finding consensus on most issues, lawmakers from both parties have recently found common ground when focused on expanding housing supply and addressing affordability, driven by a recognition that Americans face an uphill battle to achieve the benefits and freedom of homeownership.
But the president who made his name as a real estate developer had very little to add to the conversation last night. He claimed early on in the speech that the annual cost of a new mortgage is down $5,000 this year (in a statement, Realtor.com® Senior Economist Jake Krimmel said that number is closer to $3,000). He also briefly touched on the issue of institutional investors, one of these broadly bipartisan issues, with legislators on both sides of the aisle supporting restrictions on deep-pocketed buyers hoovering up single-family homes.
Calling homeownership “another pillar of the American dream that has been under attack,” Trump told a story about a Houston-area mother who allegedly placed 20 bids on homes and lost every single one of them to “gigantic investment firms.” He pointed to an executive order he signed that would ban some purchases by big investment firms, asking congress to “make that ban permanent.
“We want homes for people, not for corporations. Corporations are doing just fine,” Trump said, promising the Houston mother would “get (a home) soon.”
Large investors make up a relatively small fraction of home purchases, and while economists have predicted this kind of ban could provide some relief for buyers at least in some markets, the impact overall is unlikely to significantly free up inventory or increase affordability.
“It remains an open question whether banning new purchases would meaningfully shift metro-level markets—let alone move the needle on inventory and affordability nationally,” Krimmel said.
Trump did not mention his order to buy $200 billion in mortgage bonds, promises to build affordable housing on federal land, an initiative to use crypto coins to qualify for a mortgage or the long-awaited plan to remove the GSEs from conservatorship. And after a lengthy and high-profile pressure campaign on the Federal Reserve to lower rates, which included both personal attacks and criminal indictments of members, Trump only briefly claimed that “lower interest rates will solve the Biden-created housing problem.”
Mortgage rates currently stand at around 6%, down almost a full percentage point from when Trump took office—an extremely welcome trend for those in the real estate industry, with expectations that rates will fall further in 2026. Trump also noted that rents are down sharply over the past 12 months.
Krimmel applauded these positive trends (noting that some predate Trump’s term), but added that there is still a need for “a clearer legislative roadmap.”
National Association of Realtors® (NAR) Chief Advocacy Officer Shannon McGahn said in a statement responding to Trump’s address that boosting inventory, “streamlining” regulations and supporting “responsible” development “are all essential components of addressing housing affordability.” She did not address specifics of what Trump did and did not say in his speech.
“NAR encourages the Senate to consider the recently House-passed Housing for the 21st Century Act,” McGahn said. “Lawmakers can help ensure that the promise of homeownership remains achievable for current and future generations of Americans.”
The fact that Trump did not use the bully pulpit last night to draw attention to housing issues could be a preview of how his administration is going to approach the topic as the midterms loom—or maybe not. After five years in the Oval Office, Trump has proven that he can quickly shift focus and re-focus the attention on an issue.
Separately but simultaneously, the Department of Housing and Urban Development put out a release meant to highlight its “accomplishments for 2026 State of the Union.” Those include a jump in existing home sales back in December, efforts to reduce fraud, the aforementioned investor ban, supporting foster youth and ending diversity, equity and inclusion contracts.
Housing in particular faces obstacles that require long-term thinking and focus, with solutions proving illusive across multiple presidential administrations. Experts, politicians and housing advocates often point out that state and local governments often have more of a role in catalyzing new supply and removing red tape than the federal government.
“Lasting affordability relief will require not only getting the housing market moving again, but also taking meaningful steps to boost supply in the short run and expand it sustainably over the long run,” Krimmel said.
