NAR Backs 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act as 1.18 Million Homes and 6% Rates Squeeze Buyers
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jul 31
NAR Backs 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act as 1.18 Million Homes and 6% Rates Squeeze Buyers
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 31
Summary
The National Association of Realtors cast the newly enacted 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act as a major step to ease homeownership barriers, saying the package gives communities tools to plan growth, speed federal approvals and expand financing options.
1.18 million homes are available today versus 1.65 million a decade ago, NAR said, while mortgage rates have climbed from 3.7% to above 6%, worsening affordability even as the U.S. population has grown by 20 million.
First-time buyers now have a median age of 40 — a record high in NAR's 2025 profile — underscoring how supply shortages, insurance costs, zoning limits and other regulatory hurdles are delaying entry into the market.
NAR said the law combines nearly 50 bills and argued further policy changes are still needed, including opposition to rent control and an update to capital-gains exclusion thresholds that it says are freezing housing supply.
Homeownership remains broadly valued, with 85% of voters calling it part of the American Dream; NAR said homeowners hold 40 times the net worth of renters and real estate accounts for nearly one-fifth of U.S. GDP.