After months of stalled progress, the House and Senate have reached an agreement to pass the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (HR 6644), a sweeping housing package designed to boost housing supply and affordability.
The Senate voted 87-8 on July 16 to consider the House-amended version of the 21st Century Road to Housing Act, a 381-page bill containing 45 housing provisions. Final votes in both chambers are expected in the coming days before the measure heads to President Donald Trump’s desk.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, (D-Mass.), ranking member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, said the final package includes priorities from both parties and both chambers, including changes to the Community Development Block Grant program, an institutional investor ban, and several funded housing programs.
“There is so much in this bill, each piece directing us toward increasing the supply of housing, bringing down the cost,” Warren said on the Senate floor.
The compromise bill follows months of negotiations after the Senate passed its version in February and the House advanced a smaller package in March. The final version includes measures backed by House Republicans, including nine community banking provisions, according to House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill (R-Ark).
The bill also includes a three-year sunset for the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery program, a compromise between Senate efforts to codify the program long term and House efforts to remove it from the bill entirely.
Several HUD pilot programs remain in the package, including grants to state and local governments for whole-home repair programs and the conversion of office and commercial space into residential use.
The bill has support from leaders of both chambers’ financial committees, including Hill, Representative Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee; Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.) chairman of the Senate Banking Committee; and Warren.
“Bipartisan, bicameral legislating is never easy—but progress matters,” Hill said after the vote.
Housing advocates have been pressing Congress to move the bill forward amid ongoing affordability concerns. American Land Title Association CEO Chris Morton said the measure reflects years of work on housing policy.
“ALTA appreciates the leadership of Congress and the Trump administration in tackling housing affordability,” Morton said. “The title insurance industry looks forward to continuing to work with policymakers to advance commonsense housing solutions that promote and protect the American dream of homeownership.”
The Senate vote coincided with the National Association of Realtors’ legislative meetings in Washington, D.C., where NAR also pushed for Congress to advance the bill.
"We want to make sure the next generation has access to even more opportunity to create that wealth and to have that solid footing," said Shannon McGahn, chief advocacy officer of NAR. "This is a nationwide conversation that is happening at the local, state and federal level. I haven't seen anything like this since the 2008 financial crisis."
