The 21st Century Road to Housing Act became law at midnight on July 11 without President Donald Trump's signature, marking the most significant federal housing legislation to take effect in decades. The bill passed with broad bipartisan majorities in both chambers of Congress, clearing the House and Senate on June 22 and 23 respectively. Trump canceled plans to sign the legislation on June 24 and declined to act on it before the Friday night deadline, allowing it to automatically become law without his approval.
The president had said he would not sign the housing bill until the Senate passed separate legislation requiring voters to provide photo identification to prove citizenship. On Friday morning, Trump reiterated that position in a social media post, saying he would not sign the housing bill "in PROTEST over the fact that the United States Senate is not capable of passing the SAVE AMERICA ACT." Despite his stated opposition, Trump chose not to veto the measure ahead of the midnight deadline.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, one of the bill's sponsors, posted on social media just as the clock struck midnight that the housing bill had become law. "Trump refused to sign it, but he couldn't stop it," Warren said in the post on X. "This law is GROUNDBREAKING. It will build more housing, bring down costs, and for the first time, stop private equity from buying up homes."
The legislation includes new restrictions on investment in single-family homes, in some cases capping the number of homes an investor can own at 350 units. Notably absent from the final version were controversial rules on build-to-rent projects that appeared in earlier drafts. Those BTR restrictions had raised alarms in the real estate industry and contributed to the lengthy timeline for Congress to finalize the bill, which went back and forth between chambers with votes on several versions before final passage.
Beyond the single-family rental sector, the bill encompasses a wide range of housing policy changes. It creates incentives for localities to reduce entitlement timelines, including a $200 million annual competitive grant program rewarding municipalities that increase housing supply. The legislation also eliminates the chassis requirement for manufactured homes, which will make them cheaper to build, and increases the amount banks can invest in the affordable housing sector.
Real estate leaders view the measures as positive but not transformative. "No one thing is going to be magical, but put together, they will start creating a better environment," National Multifamily Housing Council President Sharon Wilson Géno said last month of the bill's various provisions. "We can now show housing is an important issue, it's bipartisan in nature." Industry executives hope the law represents the first in a series of steps to reform federal policy addressing the housing crisis.
The Road to Housing Act emerged as a rare example of bipartisan cooperation in a polarized Congress as lawmakers sought to take action on affordability ahead of midterm elections. A Harris Poll released this week found that 95 percent of U.S. adults believe the country is facing an overall affordability crisis, with 45 percent saying they are having trouble affording housing. The nation faces a shortage of more than 7.1 million homes for renters considered extremely low-income, according to a National Low Income Housing Coalition report last year.
Housing construction has been slowing, with multifamily starts in May declining 40 percent from the prior month and 14 percent year-over-year. Real estate industry leaders celebrated the passage of the Road to Housing Act as a step toward solving the crisis. "For the millions across the country struggling with rising rents and home prices, 21st Century ROAD to Housing creates a real opportunity to expand housing supply, lower costs, and make it easier to find an affordable home," Enterprise Community Partners CEO Shaun Donovan said in a statement Friday shortly before the bill became law.
The National League of Cities, an organization representing municipalities, also applauded the bill's passage into law. "We are particularly pleased that this legislation preserves local zoning authority, avoids unfunded mandates for local governments and aligns with local infrastructure needs," President Kevin Kramer said in a statement. "Local governments will have the tools they need to be an effective partner to the federal government as this is rolled out across the country."