Landmark Housing Bill Becomes Law Without Trump's Signature

The most comprehensive housing legislation in decades automatically became law at midnight Saturday after President Trump declined to sign it, allowing the constitutional clock to run out rather than vetoing the bipartisan bill.

The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, which passed both chambers of Congress by wide bipartisan margins in June, became law under a constitutional provision that converts a bill into law if the president neither signs nor vetoes it within 10 days, excluding Sundays, after receiving it. House Speaker Mike Johnson sent the bill to the president on June 29.

Trump had been set to sign the legislation at a Capitol Hill ceremony last month but abruptly canceled, vowing to withhold his signature until the Senate passed the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, known as the SAVE America Act. That legislation would require Americans to present proof of citizenship and photo identification to register and vote. Senate Republican leaders have repeatedly said the elections bill lacks the votes to pass, and Democrats have argued it would disenfranchise eligible voters.

As recently as Friday morning, the president reiterated his refusal on social media. "I will not sign the Housing Bill, which has been fully approved by Congress and sent to the White House, in PROTEST over the fact that the United States Senate is not capable of passing THE SAVE AMERICA ACT," Trump posted on Truth Social.

Despite the protest, Trump also did not veto the measure, allowing it to take effect.

The law contains more than 40 provisions aimed at expanding housing supply and reducing costs. Among its key elements: it prohibits large institutional investors that own at least 350 single-family homes from purchasing additional such properties, with certain exceptions. It also includes measures to reduce regulatory and permitting barriers for home construction, a pilot program to expand access to small mortgages under $100,000, and an expanded federal definition of manufactured homes intended to lower construction costs.

The legislation arrives as the median price of an existing home hit an all-time high of $440,660 in June, up 1.8% from a year earlier, according to the National Association of Realtors. A U.S. family needs an income of roughly $117,000 a year to afford an average home on the market, according to the real estate brokerage Redfin, nearly $30,000 more than what most U.S. households earn.

Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the bill's chief Senate sponsor, criticized the president's extended delay. "At the stroke of midnight, a huge bipartisan bill to lower housing costs became law without the President's signature," she said in a statement. "Donald Trump couldn't pick up the pen because he just isn't interested in lowering costs for American families."

Warren also celebrated on X, writing that Trump "refused to sign it — but it automatically went into effect while he was sleeping last night," and calling the outcome "a huge win for working people." @ewarren wrote in a post on X.

Senator Andy Kim also weighed in, writing in a post on X @SenatorAndyKim that the act is "the BIGGEST housing bill in 30 years" and touting benefits for his home state, saying the measure includes "disaster relief funding to help NJ rebuild."

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrote on social media that Republicans "would rather make it harder to vote than easier to afford a home."

"This bill becoming law is a genuine milestone," said Dennis Shea of the Bipartisan Policy Center, which had found that 89% of voters across party lines wanted congressional action on housing affordability. Experts cautioned, however, that relief for buyers and sellers would materialize gradually rather than immediately.