NCSHA Blogs
Housing Bill Kick-Starts New HUD Research, Policy Guidance, and Best Practices
While the most impactful aspects of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (the Act) are arguably the policy reforms and new pilot programs enacted by the legislation, it is also clear Congress believes we have more to learn about how to optimize affordable housing policy. As such, the Act requires federal agencies and other regulatory and research entities to conduct various studies, issue reports, and establish best practices and other guidelines to inform policy development in the future. This blog lists the publications the legislation mandates and what we might learn from them.
21st Century ROAD Bill Ushers in Major Changes to Environmental Reviews
Among the most persistent barriers to affordable housing production often are well-intentioned regulatory requirements that add cost and/or delay project closings or construction schedules. House Housing and Insurance Subcommittee Chairman Mike Flood (R-NE) has characterized environmental review rules as one of the “four horsemen of the housing apocalypse” driving up housing costs (the others are Davis Bacon; Build America, Buy America; and Section 3). This blog post drills down on what those reforms are and how they will change the environmental review requirements for affordable housing.
Congress Strengthens, Overhauls HOME Program in 21st Century ROAD Legislation
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act is arguably the most significant affordable housing legislation to pass since Congress enacted the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act of 1990, which, among other things, established the HOME Investment Partnerships Program. Since then, housers have learned a lot about what makes HOME great and how it could be further strengthened.
21st Century ROAD to Housing Act Creates New Pilot Programs to Accelerate Housing Development
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act authorizes a plethora of temporary pilot programs to help the federal government test out new approaches to housing policy, including some which have been funded in previous legislation but lacked underlying authorization. Whether these programs become operational in practice will largely depend on whether congressional appropriators dedicate funding to them in the annual spending process.
Changes in Store for Housing Programs After Congress Passes Comprehensive Housing Bill
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (the Act), which officially became law on July 11, is the most comprehensive overhaul of America’s affordable housing programs in decades, ushering in policy changes to existing affordable housing programs, establishing new temporary pilot programs and policies, and mandating new research and reporting to better inform housing policy in the future. This first post in a daily, weeklong blog series unpacks the policy changes, new programs established, and other directives of the legislation.
Congress Approves Landmark Housing Legislation; Trump Signature Expected Soon
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act earlier tonight with a strong bipartisan vote of __ – __. This is the same version of the bill the Senate passed 85–5 last night. President Trump will likely sign the bill into law soon, possibly as soon as sometime Wednesday.
Update: House and Senate Housing Leaders Reach Agreement on 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act; Passage Expected Soon
UPDATE: The Senate just voted 85-5 to pass the new version of the 21st Century Road to Housing Act Senate and House leaders agreed to last week. We expect the House to consider and approve the...
Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies Report Finds Housing Affordability Challenges Persist Despite Slowing Demand and Rising Vacancies
The Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS) released its annual State of the Nation's Housing 2026 report on June 17, finding that housing affordability challenges continue to worsen even as housing demand softens and vacancy rates rise, with slowing construction limiting relief.
HUD Publishes Request for Information on BABA-Compliant Products
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today published a request for information (RFI) seeking public comments on the availability of domestically manufactured products used in...
Flood, Goodlander Introduce Legislation to Study and Temporarily Suspend BABA for HUD Affordable Housing Programs
House Housing and Insurance Subcommittee Chairman Mike Flood (R-NE) and Representative Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) today introduced the Build Housing Affordably Act (BABA), which would require HUD to conduct a comprehensive study of the impacts of Build America, Buy America requirements on affordable housing development assisted with HUD programs and issue a report to Congress on the findings of the study. The bill suspends application of BABA to HUD programs until 60 days after HUD submits the report. Upon BABA’s reinstatement, the bill also sets a 90-day deadline for HUD to approve or deny BABA waiver requests submitted to the Department.
