House Approves Bipartisan Housing Bill with Heavy-Handed Investor Restrictions, Heads to President
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The House passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, advancing a bill that increases home construction but imposes strict limits on private investment, sending it to the president for signature.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act on Tuesday with a 358-32 vote, forwarding the measure to the president’s desk. The bill, which previously cleared the Senate by an 85-5 margin, aims to expand housing supply through grant funding, pilot programs, and by streamlining local permitting. However, it also includes sweeping restrictions on large institutional investors, a move that many conservatives see as government overreach into the free market.
A controversial provision, the “Homes Are For People, Not Corporations” section, would arbitrarily bar investors owning more than 350 single-family properties from making further purchases, potentially stifling private investment and innovation in the housing market. The bill also introduces regulatory reforms to speed up construction approvals, a positive step for reducing bureaucratic delays. The legislation emerged from bipartisan negotiations led by Senators Tim Scott and Elizabeth Warren and Representatives French Hill and Maxine Waters, reflecting a compromise between market-driven and regulatory approaches.
“This is an important step forward, not the final destination,” Waters said, signaling Democrats’ intent to push for even more government intervention in the housing sector.
“It’s a significant crackdown on Wall Street landlords that will help working people — and the bipartisan support means the political credit is shared,” a Democratic strategist said, highlighting the left’s focus on targeting private investors.
Republican leaders underscored the bill’s deregulatory aspects, which are essential for increasing housing supply and affordability. Senate Majority Leader John Thune noted the bill “maximizes both the equities the House has in it, the Senate has in it, and both parties have had opportunities to weigh into this,” emphasizing the importance of bipartisan input. Still, many on the right warn that restricting private investment could have unintended consequences for the housing market.