House Advances Sweeping Housing Bill Backed by Trump to Expand Supply and Limit Wall Street Home Buying

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The House overwhelmingly approved the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, a bipartisan package aimed at increasing housing construction, easing affordability pressures and limiting large institutional ownership of single-family homes.

By yourNEWS Media Newsroom

The House of Representatives approved a major bipartisan housing package Tuesday that supporters say could increase housing supply, lower costs for prospective buyers and curb the growing influence of large institutional investors in the single-family housing market.

Lawmakers passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act by a 396-13 vote, sending the legislation back to the Senate for final consideration after both chambers adopted differing provisions involving investor restrictions and housing development incentives.

The bill combines zoning reforms, environmental permitting changes, workforce housing incentives and measures designed to accelerate construction of new homes amid ongoing affordability concerns nationwide.

Supporters of the legislation say the package addresses one of the core drivers of the housing affordability crisis: insufficient supply.

Among the provisions included are efforts to streamline environmental reviews, encourage local governments to modernize zoning restrictions and establish pilot grant programs intended to support new housing development.

The legislation also seeks to limit large institutional investors from accumulating single-family homes that might otherwise be purchased by individual families.

The Senate version of the bill previously approved language requiring major institutional investors that construct single-family rental properties to sell those homes within seven years.

The House version softened some of those restrictions while still limiting certain forms of large-scale corporate ownership.

Under the revised House language, exemptions were expanded for newly constructed rental properties, homes requiring significant rehabilitation and several additional categories.

Data cited from the American Enterprise Institute estimates institutional investors currently account for roughly 1 percent of the nation’s single-family housing market.

House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill, R-Arkansas, said the legislation fulfills President Donald Trump’s call to prioritize homeownership opportunities for American families over corporate acquisition strategies.

“Importantly, it delivers on President Trump’s call to limit institutional investors from competing with the American people as they seek to purchase a home,” Hill said in a May 19 statement.

“I remain committed to advancing a bipartisan, bicameral housing package that can ultimately be signed into law by the President,” he added.

The legislation reflects broader priorities advanced by the Trump administration since returning to office earlier this year.

In January, Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to prioritize homeownership opportunities for individual buyers and scrutinize large institutional investors purchasing single-family homes.

“To preserve the supply of single-family homes for American families and increase the paths to homeownership, it is the policy of my Administration that large institutional investors should not buy single-family homes that could otherwise be purchased by families,” Trump stated in the order.

The president later publicly urged Congress to pass the housing package immediately.

“I called for Congress to save the American Dream of Homeownership, and ban these purchases, PERMANENTLY!” Trump wrote in a May 11 Truth Social post.

He credited Sens. Bernie Moreno and Tim Scott for helping advance the legislation through the Senate.

The measure also drew support from prominent Democrats despite broader partisan divisions over housing and economic policy.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, described the country as facing “a full-blown housing crisis” and argued the bill would help increase home construction nationwide.

“This landmark, bipartisan bill will help tackle the root cause of this crisis by getting more homes built in every community across the country,” Warren said during Senate debate earlier this year.

“It will make sure families own those homes, not giant corporate landlords looking to jack up the rent and squeeze out every nickel of profit they can,” she added.

Rep. Maxine Waters, D-California, also endorsed the legislation, saying it removes barriers slowing affordable housing development and introduces reforms supporting modular housing and renter protections.

Industry organizations likewise praised the bill.

Bill Owens, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, commended lawmakers from both parties for working together on what he described as one of the most significant housing efforts in decades.

“Solving our nation’s housing crisis is truly a bipartisan issue,” Owens said in a May 14 statement.

The legislation arrives as the Trump administration continues pursuing additional housing-related reforms focused on mortgage lending and homebuyer accessibility.

In April, federal housing agencies implemented updated mortgage credit scoring models for loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The changes allow approved lenders to begin using VantageScore 4.0 and FICO Score 10T models when evaluating borrowers.

According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the updated scoring systems incorporate broader credit trends and rent payment histories while using machine-learning methods to evaluate creditworthiness.

“We are modernizing credit scoring with more predictive models, helping millions of Americans who responsibly pay rent qualify for mortgages,” FHFA Director Bill Pulte said in an April 22 statement.

Housing market conditions remain mixed nationwide.

According to Redfin data, April saw approximately 47 percent more sellers than buyers, signaling continued softness in demand despite easing recession concerns and a stronger labor market.

Redfin senior economist Asad Khan said buyer interest showed signs of modest recovery last month after months of reduced activity.

“Homebuyer demand has been dwindling for months, but finally ticked up in April thanks to a strengthening job market and declining recession risk,” Khan said in a May 12 report.

Home prices rose 0.2 percent during the month, while the median home sale price approached $398,000 nationally.