Bipartisan home affordability bill passes the House

Key Points:

• The House passed a bipartisan bill 396 to 13 aimed at addressing the U.S. housing affordability crisis by encouraging homebuilding and banning corporate landlords from buying more than 350 single-family homes, though the Senate and House must still reconcile their versions before it reaches the president.
• The bill targets large institutional investors who have been criticized for outbidding families for homes, despite their relatively small share (about 3%) of the single-family rental market nationally, with higher concentrations in some regions.
• While corporate landlords would be banned from buying additional homes, they would still be allowed to build new "build-to-rent" homes under the House bill, which removed the Senate's provision requiring these homes to be sold to families after seven years.
• The legislation includes a variety of measures beyond the corporate buy ban, such as deregulating factory-built homes, streamlining environmental reviews, and funding grant programs for preapproved housing designs to speed up construction and reduce costs.
• President Trump supported the Senate's original version but has not commented on the amended House bill; both parties are keen to demonstrate legislative action on housing ahead of the midterm elections.