REALTORS® Woke Us Up to Stark Housing Reality
The REALTOR® voice is moving the needle on Capitol Hill as the housing inventory and affordability crises come into clearer focus and lawmakers realize they must support legislation to boost homeownership. “Be encouraged because you are making progress,” Sen. Todd Young (R-Indiana) told REALTORS® last week at the NAR Policy Forum in Washington, DC “And we continue to make progress with your help.”
The forum, which brought together economists, housing analysts and policymakers, highlighted several pieces of housing legislation on the table in Congress and backed by the National Association of REALTORS®. The proposed More Homes on the Market Act, for example, would increase the capital gains tax exclusion and incentivize longtime homeowners to sell. Other legislation is under consideration for tax credits that would attract private investment to rehab owner-occupied homes and convert empty office buildings into residential properties.
“The National Association of REALTORS® is working tirelessly in Washington to ensure that the next generation and those who have historically been shut out of homeownership have access to the vital wealth-building opportunities that are created through homeownership,” said NAR Vice President of Advocacy Nate Johnson. “Our advocacy work has scored a number of important wins. For years, NAR has