A little-known housing bill moving through Congress could have a big impact on your next mortgage

Congress has passed a landmark housing affordability bill that could make the path to homeownership more attainable for many Americans, though President Donald Trump is now delaying signing the bipartisan bill into law. On Tuesday, the House overwhelmingly passed a bill—the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act—that aims to address the housing affordability crisis by revising federal housing programs, increasing the supply of affordable homes, and strengthening the role that community banks can play in mortgage lending, among other measures. After months of wrangling, politicians on both sides of the aisle were able to do something that seems increasingly rare these days: agree. But any hint of an easing of political divisions was quickly dashed. Trump started Wednesday by diminishing what he previously called “the most comprehensive and consequential housing legislation” in history and posted on Truth Social that the housing bill was “of minor importance compared to lower interest rates.” In a subsequent post, Trump said he had canceled an event at the Capitol where he was slated to sign into legislation—-until Congress passes an elections bill known as the SAVE America Act, which he said he considers “a national emergency.” Though the housing affordability bill is now being waylaid as it’s used as a pawn in a political game of chess, it is still being widely heralded as an important step in addressing housing affordability ahead of the midterm elections. WHY THE BILL IS BEING HAILED A LANDMARK The bill aims to increase the supply of affordable housing by expanding available financing, opening up new grants programs, creating incentives for local communities to build more housing, and streamlining or reducing some regulations that have slowed down construction. “It is the most important and most comprehensive housing bill of this century,” Shaun Donovan, president of Enterprise Community Partners and a former secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development