In a major step forward to spur job and economic growth and keep the housing recovery on track, Reps. Gary Miller (R-CA) and Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY) have introduced bipartisan legislation that would help provide home builders access to credit for viable home building projects. "We commend Reps. Miller and McCarthy for acting to remove a major impediment to the housing recovery by promoting legislation that will enable home builders to obtain construction loans in order to put construction crews back to work and to meet rising demand across much of the nation for new homes," said Rick Judson, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Charlotte, N.C.
HR 1255, the Home Construction Lending Regulatory Improvement Act of 2013, represents a substantial step forward in the effort to restore the flow of credit to the housing industry and is identical to legislation championed by Miller in the last Congress. The measure would address specific regulatory obstacles to the credit needs of the nation's home builders.
In many housing markets where demand is increasing and the supply of new homes remains near record-lows, builders still cannot obtain construction loans because credit remains very tight in the aftermath of the housing downturn.
"As a result, jobs are being lost and home builders are unable to meet the needs of home buyers in scores of local markets whose economies are on the mend," said Judson.
Not only is this hurting job creation and economic activity in countless communities across the land, it also places an added burden on cash-strapped state and local governments that rely on a robust property tax base to fund essential services, including schools, police and firefighters. Constructing 100 new homes creates more than 300 full-time jobs and $8.9 million in federal, state and local tax revenue.
To restore liquidity and provide stable financing to the residential housing sector, the bill would remove barriers to lending while preserving the regulators' ability to assure the safety and soundness of the financial institutions they oversee.
