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21st Century ROAD to Housing Act takes effect, easing housing approvals
The nearly 400-page law, effective July 11, streamlines certain federal environmental reviews and expands support for factory-built housing, while leaving local zoning and permitting as a key bottleneck.
HousingWire reports that the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act went into effect on July 11, bringing a broad set of pro-housing provisions intended to make new homes easier to build and reduce regulatory friction. The nearly 400-page bill includes measures aimed at streamlining federal reviews, supporting factory-built housing, expanding housing supply, and encouraging local governments to adopt pro-supply reforms. It also takes an all-housing approach, covering for-sale and rental homes, market-rate and below-market options, and multifamily units, alongside traditional site-built construction and off-site building such as manufactured homes, modular housing, and accessory dwelling units (ADUs).
HousingWire also notes that the law includes a ban on institutional investors from buying more homes, but provides carve-outs for build-to-rent (BTR) projects. The bill directs agencies to coordinate environmental reviews for federally funded residential construction, including through provisions that involve the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Even with the federal changes, housing leaders cited by HousingWire say the biggest constraints still tend to be local. Ed Brady, president and CEO of the Home Builders Institute, said the industry is “thrilled” to see momentum at the federal level, but he called for additional implementation work and further conversations on what remains to be done, especially locally.