The U.S. House of Representatives passed an amended version of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (H.R. 6644) on Wednesday, May 20, sending the bill back to the Senate for further consideration.
The House approved the measure in a 396-13 vote, with all opposition coming from Republicans. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) moved the measure under suspension of the rules, a fast-track process that bypasses certain procedural hurdles but requires two-thirds support.
The House initially passed H.R. 6644 on Feb. 9 as the Housing for the 21st Century Act in a 390-9 vote. The Senate later amended the measure, renamed it the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, and passed it March 12 in an 89-10 vote.
The House-amended version would authorize incentives to build new homes, create a program to convert abandoned buildings into housing developments, and establish new grants to modernize existing homes, among other provisions. The package also includes a section on “Housing Supply Frameworks,” which would establish guidelines and best practices for zoning and land-use policies.
The institutional-investor provisions align with President Trump’s Jan. 20 executive order, “Stopping Wall Street from Competing with Main Street Homebuyers,” which called for legislation to restrict large institutional investors from acquiring single-family homes.
However, the House version stripped out a controversial provision that would have required large institutional investors to divest certain single-family rental homes within seven years. The provision drew criticism from some Republicans, who argued it amounted to government interference in the private housing market.
President Trump, who had previously urged the House to pass the Senate’s version of the bill, signaled support May 20 for the House-amended package. In a statement of administration policy, the White House said the measure “would increase the availability of single-family homes and promote homeownership for working families.”
“The Administration strongly supports passage of this bill and urges the Senate to take up and pass this legislation,” the statement said. “The Administration requests both chambers resolve any remaining differences expeditiously.”
Trade Groups And Associations Praise House Passage
The Community Home Lenders of America also praised the House vote, pointing specifically to provisions affecting manufactured housing and small-dollar mortgages.
“In particular, CHLA appreciates the inclusion of Section 301, which would eliminate the permanent chassis requirement for manufactured homes,” CHLA said. “Manufactured housing is among the nation’s most affordable homeownership options.”
“Another noteworthy focus of the bill is Sections 105, 401, and 402 – all designed to promote small-dollar mortgage loans, which are more difficult to originate,” CHLA said.
Section 105 would allow HUD, acting through the Federal Housing Commissioner, to establish a pilot program to increase access to small-dollar mortgages. The program may include direct payments to mortgagees to incentivize small-dollar mortgage originations, adjustments to FHA terms and costs, grants to borrowers for down payments, closing costs, appraisals and title insurance, outreach to potential borrowers, and technical assistance for mortgagees. Under the section, a small-dollar mortgage is defined as a mortgage with an original principal balance of $100,000 or less secured by a one- to four-unit property that is the borrower’s principal residence.
Section 401 would require the director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection to submit a report to Congress on loan originator compensation practices in the residential mortgage market, including how those compensation models affect the availability of small-dollar mortgage loans and potential barriers to small-dollar mortgage lending.
Section 402 would require the CFPB director, in consultation with HUD and the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to evaluate the impact of federal points-and-fees thresholds on small-dollar mortgage originations. For that section, the bill defines a small-dollar mortgage as one with an original principal obligation of less than $100,000.
The Mortgage Bankers Association also commended House lawmakers for passing the amended package, after previously urging House leaders to advance the bill. MBA said the revisions addressed concerns raised by the trade group and other stakeholders.
“MBA commends House Financial Services Committee Chair French Hill, Ranking Member Maxine Waters, and the bipartisan group of lawmakers whose leadership and collaboration resulted in overwhelming passage of this consequential housing package,” said Bob Broeksmit, CMB, MBA’s president and CEO. “The House revisions addressed many key concerns raised by MBA and other stakeholders, strengthening the legislation while preserving important measures in the Senate’s bill to boost housing supply and expand access to affordable mortgage credit.”
Broeksmit urged swift action in the Senate.
“The Senate’s quick passage of this bill and President Trump’s signature will help advance meaningful housing affordability solutions for our nation’s homeowners and renters,” he said.
