House passes bipartisan housing bill as Trump zeroes in on affordability crisis

Lawmakers advanced a bipartisan housing bill aimed at boosting supply as Trump focuses on easing costs for families.

House Speaker Mike Johnson leaves 10 Downing Street after meeting Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer in London, Jan. 19, 2026. (Alberto Pezzali/AP Photo)

The legislation that passed on Monday is a wide-ranging bill with various measures aimed at growing the supply of affordable housing in the U.S., including incentivizing the construction of multifamily homes, taller buildings on smaller lots, and less restrictive permitting processes in state and local jurisdictions.

The streamlining would include establishing a new pilot program under the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to award grants for creating "pattern books" of pre-approved housing designs that are already compliant with local building codes.

Parts of the bill are chiefly aimed at expanding "missing middle" housing, which is the range between single-family homes and larger apartment buildings.

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The measures are primarily aiding first-time home buyers as well as lower-income Americans, and housing developers focused on small and mid-sized housing rather than larger luxury construction.

President Donald Trump speaks to the press in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Feb. 2, 2026.  (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

It comes as affordability appears to be an increasingly important topic in the coming November midterm elections.

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Other supporters of the legislation include Rep. Emmanuel Cleaver, D-Mo., and Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Ind., the latter of which championed a bill whose core tenets got folded into the final piece.

"If House Republicans and Democrats can agree on this package to increase housing supply and lower prices across the nation, the Senate should be able to swiftly send it to the president's desk," Stutzman told Fox News Digital. "Our constituents need the relief this bill offers."

Stutzman introduced a bill in September of last year aimed at streamlining the environmental review process for new rural housing projects.

The bill now heads to the Senate, where it must pass with bipartisan support before getting to Trump's desk for his signature.

Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.

Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/house-passes-bipartisan-housing-bill-trump-zeroes-affordability-crisis