The housing mess in San Francisco and California is mostly self-inflicted, but the federal government does continue to play a role in regulating the financing and civil rights aspects of housing. The ROAD to Housing Act of 2025 — which includes a large number of sections to boost building, affordability, and accessibility of homes in the United States and streamlines a number of federal housing programs — passed out of a Senate committee unanimously at the end of July and provides hope that our dysfunctional political system might be able to accomplish something if it puts its mind to it.
Affordable housing journalist and advocate Andre Shashaty told me something in 2014 that is worth repeating. Aside from a few occasions in our country’s history when the federal government took an active role in housing, “at the federal level we’ve kind of written it off.” He noted that presidents of both parties had a shared disinterest in putting money or effort into housing, especially affordable housing and rental housing. Furthermore, Congress wasn’t exactly pressuring the presidents to spend money on it.
That might be changing, at least if the ROAD to Housing Act is any indication. The legislation is a rare bipartisan win, crafted by Republican Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina and Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Warren said she’s “been calling on Congress to address our nation’s housing shortage for years, and I’m proud to work with Chair Scott and our entire Committee to put forward legislation that will boost housing supply, reduce homelessness, and expand homeownership for families.” Scott said he’s supported “commonsense reforms to reverse decades of failed housing policies,” and also said this bill would “increase access to affordable housing for Americans across the country.”
The two committee leaders said the bill would expand and preserve the housing supply (by removing regulatory barriers, promoting innovative construction such as modular and manufactured housing, supporting communities dealing with natural disasters, increasing and preserving existing housing, and addressing neighborhood blight), improve affordability and access (by expanding access to homeownership, improving affordability, assisting veterans, reducing homelessness, and reducing appraisal shortages and dealing with inaccurate appraisals), improve accountability and fiscal responsibility, and strengthen oversight and program integrity.
The Bipartisan Policy Center calls it “the most impactful and comprehensive piece of housing legislation since the Great Recession.”
That might sound like a big, full bucket of things, but that’s only the greatly synopsized version. Taken all together, it is what the Bipartisan Policy Center says “would be the most impactful and comprehensive piece of housing legislation since the Great Recession.” National Association of Realtors President Kevin M. Sears said it is “the kind of thoughtful, bipartisan approach needed to address America’s housing challenges.”
That’s not a sea change in federal involvement, but it does show an actual commitment by some of our national legislators to deal with a problem that hurts everyone, from red states to blue states, from cities to rural areas and small towns.
I’ll give the last word to Senator Scott:
For far too long, Congress believed this problem was too big to solve. Today, we’re taking not a step — but we’re taking a leap in the right direction in a bipartisan fashion. Many people around the country are frustrated with the way we do American politics [and] wonder, is there any issue that brings this nation together and I’m here to say, halleluiah! We have found one — it is housing. . . .
Let us remember that today we are doing something that I frankly hope that we get more of. We’ve had this bipartisan coalition working together on issues of fentanyl, that we did last Congress. I hope that this is a start and a spark for more cooperation on both sides. Thank you for the Ranking Member [Warren] for participating and rolling your sleeves up and really getting into the nitty gritty so we would be in a position where we could get something done — not just make a point — but make a difference.
Headline of the week
“Luxury real estate agent charged for allegedly biting 7-year-old at concert” (Cleveland.com)
Go figure
75 percent: number of the top 228 metro markets in the United States that registered home price gains in the second quarter of 2025, which was down from 83 percent in the first quarter (National Association of Realtors) . . . $884,050: median sales price of homes across California in July 2025 (California Association of Realtors) . . . 5 percent: increase in median sales price for a San Francisco home in July 2025 (Compass) . . . 15.3 percent: number of home agreement contracts canceled last month, the highest July rate since 2017, likely due to homebuyer unease over high prices, economic uncertainty and high mortgage rates (Real Estate News) . . . 9.5 million: listing price of Abstract Expressionist painter Mark Rothko’s former studio in New York City. In addition to its connection to the late artist, the building’s large interior space had served as the equestrian training place for children of financier James Stillman, who commissioned the building — and singer Elvis Presley reportedly recorded part of his film “Love Me Tender” on the property. (StupidDope)
Say what?
“[S]ome of the pressure from tariffs is being relaxed as trade deals are arranged and de-escalations of some trade tensions are undertaken.”
— Robert Dietz, chief economist at the National Association of Home Builders (Real Estate News)