Housing Affordability
Good and Bad Housing Provisions in $3.5 Trillion Reconciliation Plan
House Democrats are working to draft a $3.5 trillion Build Back Better plan that includes onerous tax hikes of $2 trillion and aggressive energy efficiency requirements in model building energy codes that would harm housing affordability. This ambitious plan also contains several other elements of interest to the housing community.
NAHB Opposes House Democrats’ Plan for $2 Trillion in New Taxes
NAHB is sounding the alarm to lawmakers as House Democrats within the Ways and Means Committee begin consideration of a massive overhaul of the tax code which would generate over $2 trillion in additional tax revenue over the next 10 years.
NAHB Opposes Energy Codes Provision in Build Back Better Act
NAHB has sent a letter to House Energy Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) and its members expressing strong opposition to a provision in the Build Back Better Act calling for aggressive energy efficiency requirements in model building energy codes.
Biden Administration Announces Steps to Increase Affordable Housing Supply
The White House today announced several steps the Biden administration will take “to create, preserve, and sell to homeowners and non-profits nearly 100,000 additional affordable homes for homeowners and renters over the next three years, with an emphasis on the lower and middle segments of the market.”
Treasury Announces 7 Steps to Expedite Emergency Rental Assistance
Congress has appropriated $46.5 billion for emergency rental assistance but state and local governments have only distributed less than $6 billion to date. These guidelines announced by Treasury are designed to streamline the application process and make it easier for renters and landlords to get help.
Senate Finance Committee Chair Proposes Housing Bill
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) announced today the Decent, Affordable, Safe Housing (DASH) for All Act. The legislation includes a number of tax-related proposals, which fall under Wyden’s committee jurisdiction, as well as other housing policy changes that are outside of the panel’s focus.
FHFA Proposes New Housing Goals for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has proposed its housing goals for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for 2022 to 2024. This year, FHFA is proposing two new single-family home purchase subgoals to replace the existing low-income areas subgoal. One new subgoal targets minority communities; the other continues to target low-income neighborhoods.
High Prices Most Common Reason Why Active Buyers Remain Sidelined
The inability to find an affordably priced home is the primary reason active buyers have not pulled the trigger, with 39% citing high prices as their biggest obstacle in the second quarter of 2021, according to the latest Housing Trends report produced by the NAHB Economics team.
2 Significant Headwinds for Housing’s Growth
Although new home sales are 13.5% higher on a year-to-date basis compared to 2020, the June data marked the third consecutive monthly decline. Rising prices and lingering uncertainty will hinder the industry at least through the end of the year.
Housing Affordability Plunges on Soaring Material Costs, Rising Home Prices
Soaring building material costs, high demand and low inventory have added tens of thousands of dollars to the price of a new home and caused housing affordability to fall to its lowest level in nearly a decade during the second quarter of 2021.
