Momentum continues to build in Washington for an omnibus approach to the nation’s housing challenges.
The Housing for the 21st Century Act is, of course, something that should have passed at the end of the 20th century, rather than a quarter of the way through its namesake century. Nonetheless, the bill is making progress through Capitol Hill with bipartisan support. The cynical question is likely to be at what stage will it be kneecapped by opponents.
The bill, which on Feb. 9 somehow managed to pass 390–9 in the most polarized House of Representatives since before the Civil War, now has to be passed by the Senate, merged with a competing Senate bill known as the ROAD to Housing Act, or killed in dirty backroom dealing. There is word from both chambers that the competing bills each contain something that is anathema to a significant portion of the members of the other legislative chamber, so this should be fun.
Those anathema-inducing sections aside, both bills cover some of the same ground as they try to rework the regulatory environment, increase the amount of housing production, and reduce the cost of home buying. For example, the House bill, officially known as H.R. 6644, and the Senate bill, S. 2651, both aim to boost investment in affordable housing, streamline environmental review for specific housing projects, increase FHA multifamily loan limits, and try to help local governmental entities with best practices for permitting and zoning. (The Bipartisan Policy Center offers a helpful side-by-side comparison of the bills.)
Before the vote on the House floor, support for H.R. 6644 was offered by groups ranging from the conservative Americans for Prosperity (“a promising step forward in reducing federal housing regulations and removing barriers to increasing housing supply and innovation”) to Habitat for Humanity International (“the most meaningful housing package that has come out of the House in more than a decade”).
Even if the House and Senate successfully reconcile their bills, there’s still another branch of government to weigh in, and it’s skeptical.
With such large numbers of supporters for the general effort on both sides of the aisle, it’s tempting to think that, (a) it will pass, and (b) government can actually accomplish things even in these crazy times. But even if the House and Senate have successful bill reconciliation sessions, there’s still another branch of government to weigh in, and it’s already skeptical. The White House wants Republicans to add wording to limit the number of single-family homes that can be owned by large investors. It’s an issue that resonates with populists on the left and the right, but free-market-oriented House Republicans aren’t thrilled with it, and they still call the shots in the House.
If a unified housing bill manages to make it through the congressional and White House gauntlet and become law, then much of its success will still fall to local leaders and advocates to make housing production a reality. And let’s just say that’s not exactly a strength of San Franciscans.
Headline of the week
“64% of Single Americans Struggle to Afford Housing, Compared With 39% of Married People’”
Go figure
$15.5 million: reduction in price of a San Diego mansion that has been on the market for more than 470 days (East Bay Times) … $40,000: amount single Bay Area condo owners pay over what their married counterparts pay (Redfin News) … 25: the number of times the same floor in a commercial space in a suburb of Delhi, India, was sold to unaware investors who each thought they were the exclusive buyer (The Realty Today) … 4.4: percentage decrease in existing home sales nationally from January 2025 to January 2026 (National Association of Realtors) … $1.5 million: average amount of OpenAI stock the company’s 4,000 employees received last year, on top of salaries and cash bonus (Financial Times) … $2–3 million: value of a Park City, Utah home allegedly offered to a married contractor by the married CEO of a large real estate firm as part of an effort to get her to leave her husband. The allegations, included in a suit the contractor’s estranged husband filed against the CEO, include an additional $500,000 in cash and an offer of $1.5 million more. The CEO denied the charges, telling Fox News “No offers, no romance, no interference.” (Fox News)
Say what?
“I believe that housing is one of those areas where we should be able to find some common ground. I’ve introduced five bills with Republican co-sponsors. Two of them have now passed the House. I’m going to keep pushing on the others.”
— U.S. Rep. Sam Liccardo (D-CA), “San Jose lawmaker’s housing bills advance through Congress” (San José Spotlight)