Quick Facts: ROAD to Housing Act of 2025

The ROAD to Housing Act of 2025 is a bundle of housing reforms, with an emphasis on bringing down the high cost of housing. Many of the sections are from bills introduced in the past. The bill has support from both sides of the aisle in Congress. It was brought forward by Republican Tim Scott, Chair of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, together with Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat.

In July, the bill passed out of committee unanimously. Next, it goes to the full Senate and the House.

If it’s signed into effect, it will be the most comprehensive housing law in many years.

Let’s take a peek inside.

What’s In This Proposed Federal Law?

The ROAD to Housing Act includes a wide range of policy ideas to make homes easier to afford.

One of the most helpful provisions includes financial support for local governments willing to convert unoccupied warehouses, stores, street malls, and offices into affordable and mixed-income housing. This section of the Act is titled Revitalizing Empty Structures into Desirable Environments (RESIDE). 

As it is currently written, the proposed ROAD to Housing Act will also:

• Direct the publication of new guidelines for state and local zoning and land-use policies.
• Supply grants to local governments to promote the availability of townhomes, accessory dwelling units (basement flats, backyard cottages), duplexes and so forth.
• Make the construction of accessory dwelling units an authorized use of home improvement loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration.
• Offer incentives for integrating housing in federal transit projects.
• Start up a pilot program with state and local funding to help deed holders make home alterations and repairs.
• Enable more public investments for affordable housing by banks.
• Boost federal support for low- to moderate-income households that suffer major disasters.
• Support housing production, ease homelessness, and simplify services to rural households.
• Communicate to loan applicants about veterans’ loans, Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans, and conventional loans for which they might qualify.
• Require the federal housing agency directors to regularly report on the status of government-backed mortgages and other initiatives.
• Begin a feasibility study on creating a public database to consolidate appraisal information collected by federal agencies. The law will also revamp appraisal standards, licensing, and training.

And will manufactured and modular homes finally get the attention they deserve?

It’s good to see that this proposed law will:

• Review and support federal construction financing programs for modular home developers.
• Authorize funding for a study on creating a new, uniform code for modular homes.
• End a federal rule that says all manufactured homes must have a permanent chassis. This change will expand the range of types and prices of manufactured homes.
• Allow for larger loans for use in FHA-backed manufactured housing purchases.
• Revive the Preservation and Reinvestment for Community Enhancement (PRICE) grant initiative. These funds support maintenance and improvements for manufactured homes.

The bill also includes provisions to make it easier for lenders to issue small dollar mortgage loans (loans up to $100,000). This is a crucial piece of the puzzle to connect many people with deeds.

The above list shows just a sampling of the 40-plus provisions bundled into this law.

Time to Make Financing a Manufactured Home Easier. Meanwhile, What a Difference Holding the Deed Makes!

Who Is on Record Supporting This Bill?

A group made up of 28 professional organizations is showing support for the ROAD to Housing Act through a letter to Congress. The group is diverse, including voices from the lending world as well as the champions of affordable housing. The group has called for prompt and full consideration of the bill.

The bill stands among “the most impactful housing proposals in over a decade” according to the letter.

The endorsement letter is signed by such heavyweights as Habitat for Humanity, AARP, the Mortgage Bankers Association, the American Bankers Association, the National Association of REALTORS®, the National Association of Affordable Housing Lenders, the National Rental Home Council, the National Association of Home Builders, and multiple state housing affordability agencies.

The Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, D.C. supports the bill. So does the National Low Income Housing Coalition. Many of the groups named here have worked for months or years on the policies and even the language in the bill. They continue to work on it to this day. Politicians and real estate industry leaders have also spoken out for this clearly popular bill.

With the Fallout From a Federal Government Shutdown in 2025, Can Any of This Actually Happen?

Shutdowns can wreak havoc on housing initiatives. Shutdowns in the past have reduced the capacity of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and the Agriculture Department (USDA) to work on new home loans. Other departments responsible for mortgage financing have also had their work significantly impacted.

In 2025, we can expect a particularly long, hard fallout. Working with new laws that change housing policy will become challenging for federal agencies’ workforces. Why? Since the beginning of the current Trump administration, the Department of Housing and Urban Development has cut almost a third of its staff across the board. For just two examples among several (thanks to Politico for pointing them out):

• The Office of Field Policy and Management is down to 191 full-time employees as of October 2025. (They used to have 342.) This office is in charge of communicating and implementing federal housing policies on the ground.

• The Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity is down to 315 souls. (It had 572 before.) As its name suggests, this office receives concerns from people who face unjust discrimination. Its job is to make sure federal fair housing laws are followed.

It’s hard to imagine a major housing reform bill being carried out with full attention of staffers who’ll be expected to do more work with fewer hands. States may be in a better position to boost affordability in a timely fashion. We’ll talk about what’s been happening at the state level in a future article. Watch this space.