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The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act: What It Means for Latino Families in America

A landmark bipartisan housing bill just passed the Senate 89 to 10. Here is what Latino families, renters, and entrepreneurs need to know — and what steps to take right now.

Something rare happened in Washington this spring. Republicans and Democrats set aside their differences and passed one of the most sweeping housing bills in decades — together. The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, co-led by Republican Senator Tim Scott and Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, cleared the Senate 89 to 10.

For Latino families across the country, this is not just a political headline. It is a policy shift that could directly affect how affordable your rent is, whether you can buy your first home, and how much it costs to keep the home you already own. Here is a plain-language breakdown of what is in the bill, why it matters to the Latino community specifically, and what you should do next.

Why housing is a Latino issue above all others

The Latino community is at the center of the American housing story — whether Washington notices it or not. According to NAHREP’s 2025 State of Hispanic Homeownership Report, Hispanics added 441,000 net new homeowner households in 2025, the largest single-year gain ever recorded for any racial or ethnic group. Without those gains, the total number of U.S. homeowners would have actually declined by 125,000.

In other words, Latino families are propping up the American housing market — even as they face some of the steepest barriers to entering it.

Latinos are also the youngest major demographic in the country, with a median age of 31. Nearly 69% of Latinos are millennials or younger — meaning the homebuying wave is only just beginning. But right now, many of those young families are being priced out before they can even start.

The gap is real. Regulatory costs alone add an estimated $94,000 to the price of every new home, according to the National Association of Home Builders. Outdated mortgage underwriting rules make it harder for self-employed borrowers to qualify — and Latinos are nearly twice as likely as the general population to own a small business. These structural problems are exactly what the new legislation targets.

What is the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act?

ROAD stands for Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream. The bill merges two major housing packages — the House-passed Housing for the 21st Century Act (H.R. 6644) and the Senate’s ROAD to Housing Act (S. 2651) — plus adds new provisions that were in neither original bill.

Think of it as the most comprehensive federal housing reform effort in a generation, designed to increase the supply of homes, lower the cost to build them, and modernize the programs that help families afford housing. Here are the five key provisions most relevant to Latino families and entrepreneurs.

1. More homes will get built — especially affordable ones

The most direct way to bring prices down is to build more homes. The bill takes aim at the local zoning and permitting rules that have blocked new construction for decades. It directs HUD to publish best-practice frameworks for zoning reform and creates grant programs to reward local governments that build.

The bill also includes the Whole-Home Repairs Act, which funds rehabilitation of existing homes — helping Latino homeowners in older housing stock, particularly in urban markets like Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, and Miami, keep their homes livable and valuable.

Crucially, the legislation expands the use of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) — smaller secondary units built in backyards or above garages. Many Latino families already use ADUs informally to house extended family members. The bill makes it easier to build them legally, lowering housing costs for multiple generations of the same family.

2. Vacant buildings can become homes

The bill reauthorizes and strengthens the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, giving local governments annual grants for rental and homeownership development. A new HOME pilot program would convert vacant buildings into attainable housing — turning empty storefronts and abandoned properties into homes for families. This is especially relevant in dense Latino neighborhoods in major cities where land is scarce but empty buildings are not.

3. Housing counseling gets stronger

Section 101 reforms HUD-approved housing counseling and financial literacy programs. These services guide families through the homebuying process — from pre-purchase planning to avoiding foreclosure. For many Latino families who are first-generation buyers without family members who have been through the mortgage process before, this is one of the most practical parts of the bill.

4. Opportunity zones get a boost for housing

The bill gives additional weight to grant applicants whose projects are in opportunity zones — lower-income census tracts designated by state governors. Many Latino-majority communities fall within opportunity zones, meaning housing projects serving those neighborhoods could get priority for federal construction grants, bringing more affordable units closer to where Latino families already live and work.

5. Wall Street investors face new limits on buying homes

One of the most talked-about new provisions restricts large institutional investors from purchasing single-family homes. When investment firms buy up entire neighborhoods of starter homes, first-time buyers — disproportionately Latino and younger — get squeezed out. This provision directly pushes back against that trend.

What Latino entrepreneurs and tax professionals should know

At Negozee, we work with Hispanic tax professionals and small business owners every day. The housing bill has implications that go beyond just buying a home.

What still stands in the way

It is important to be honest: the bill passed the Senate overwhelmingly, but it is currently stalled in the House. Members on both sides of the aisle have raised concerns that the Senate version overreaches or leaves out priorities from the original House bill. Final passage is not guaranteed.

Even if the full bill does not become law, many of its individual provisions have strong bipartisan support and could pass as stand-alone measures. Housing advocates note that the legislation contains pieces genuinely worth fighting for, regardless of what the final package looks like.

For Latino families, the challenge is also structural. Immigration enforcement has disrupted construction labor and weakened consumer confidence. Rising insurance costs and property taxes are creating new pressures for families who have already cleared the hurdle of buying a home. These are issues that federal legislation alone cannot fully solve.

Steps you can take right now