A bipartisan opportunity to make housing affordable

By Cristy Villalobos-Hauser, housing policy advisor

Housing affordability remains a top concern among Hispanic voters — and it’s an urgent crisis felt across the country. This fall, Congress took an important step forward with the Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream (ROAD) to Housing Act. Learn why UnidosUS is endorsing it as a promising opportunity to expand affordable housing and strengthen communities.  

For millions of Latino families, the dream of owning a home has never felt further out of reach. A recent UnidosUS poll found that housing affordability currently ranks among the top concerns for Hispanic voters, a reflection of an urgent crisis impacting communities nationwide.   

That concern is justified. The path to homeownership has been increasingly out of reach for working families. According to the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, homebuying has fallen to its lowest level since the mid-1990s due to high prices, soaring interest rates and a shortage of affordable homes. This week, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that the median age of a first-time homeowner hit a record high of 40 years old, while the share of first-time homebuyers fell to a record low of 21%. 

Yet amid growing concern, there is reason for hope. UnidosUS strongly endorses the inclusion of the HOME Reform Act of 2025 in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), introduced by Housing & Insurance Subcommittee Chairman Mike Flood (R-NE) and Ranking Member Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO). The HOME Reform Act builds on momentum to tackle the housing shortage by allowing HOME funds for housing-related infrastructure, easing federal requirements and expanding tools for housing preservation and development to build homes faster and more efficiently. 

Additionally, this fall, Congress took an important step forward with the Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream (ROAD) to Housing Act of 2025  — a comprehensive, bipartisan plan to expand affordable housing and strengthen communities. The ROAD to Housing Act passed the full Senate, and the package represents the most significant federal housing legislation since the 2008 financial crisis. The Act includes 40 provisions designed to close America’s housing supply gap, modernize zoning rules, invest in financial literacy and expand access to homeownership. The bill was incorporated into the Senate-passed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and now awaits reconciliation with the House version. 

The legislation, championed by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-SC) and Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), shows that bipartisan collaboration is instrumental when it comes to solving problems that affect every community. UnidosUS is proud to endorse both the ROAD to Housing Act and the HOME Reform Act, which reflect many of the priorities we have championed for years as part of our Homeownership Means Equity (HOME) initiative. 

Among ROAD’s most promising provisions: 

• Reforms to housing counseling and financial literacy programs: Expands housing counseling to borrowers who are 60 days or more delinquent on their mortgages and pays for this service through the Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA) Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund.  

• Housing Supply Frameworks Act: Supports modernizing local zoning and land-use policies by requiring the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to convene a task force to develop and promote best practices for zoning and land-use reform.  

• Build More Housing Near Transit Act: Encourages construction of new housing by incentivizing local governments to build more housing near public transportation hubs and ensure that new public transportation investments align with new housing opportunities. 

• Reforming Disaster Recovery Act: Permanently authorizes HUD’s Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery funding, streamlining the federal response to disasters to speed up the rehabilitation process for up to one year. 

• Rural Housing Service Reform Act: Reforms the Rural Housing Service by separating rental assistance from expiring mortgages to help keep rural housing affordable. 
• Appraisal Modernization Act: This act would require lenders to adopt clear, uniform policies to ensure fair and consistent treatment for consumers who challenge an appraisal or request a second appraisal.

These reforms would expand housing supply and would create more opportunities to empower local communities, expand access to homeownership and advance economic prosperity for millions of families. 

One aspect of the legislation that can be improved is to address HUD’s Housing Counseling Assistance Program, which serves 1 million households a year. The ROAD to Housing Act’s section on Housing Counseling and Financial Literacy Programs authorizes HUD to evaluate and penalize housing counseling agencies deemed “poor performers” by subjecting them to additional oversight or revoking their certification. Housing counselors are a qualified workforce that already obtains comprehensive training and HUD certification to be practitioners in the industry and to serve our communities. This unnecessary provision could have unintended consequences for housing counseling agencies. Many community-based housing counseling organizations already face steep workforce shortages and funding constraints. The addition of new penalties or training mandates could further strain their capacity, especially in Latino and other underserved communities that depend on these services the most. 

Congress now has a rare opportunity to deliver a historic bipartisan win on housing. As lawmakers reconcile the final NDAA, they should ensure that the ROAD to Housing Act and the HOME Reform Act are included in the bill package — and that it protects, not burdens, the counselors on the front lines of this crisis.  

At a time when the dream of homeownership is slipping away for too many Americans, this legislation offers a clear path forward. Congress should take it. Both the ROAD to Housing Act and HOME Reform Act provide the bold solutions needed to strengthen economic security and promote prosperity amid today’s housing crisis.

UnidosUS is advocating for the advancement of both acts in the House. We will continue to weigh in on the importance of expanding the supply of affordable housing supply to lower costs and create economic prosperity for Latinos nationwide.