Congress Delivers Major Housing Win for Communities and Architects
AIA applauds landmark housing law that will help communities build more homes.
WASHINGTON –July 13, 2026 – The American Institute of Architects (AIA) today celebrated the enactment of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, landmark bipartisan legislation that takes meaningful steps to address the nation's housing shortage and improve access to affordable housing.
Communities across the country continue to face rising housing costs and a shortage of homes that families can afford. This new law provides communities with new tools to increase housing production, modernize federal housing programs, and remove barriers that have slowed the delivery of new housing.
"For too many Americans, finding an affordable home has become increasingly out of reach," said AIA 2026 President Illya Azaroff, FAIA. "This law is an important step toward changing that. Architects are essential partners in creating housing that is safe, resilient, and designed to meet the needs of every community. AIA has long advocated for policies that make it easier to build more housing, and we will continue working with policymakers and federal agencies to help turn these reforms into homes people can live in."
The legislation advances several priorities AIA has championed to help communities expand housing options and combines dozens of previously introduced bills aimed at addressing the affordability crisis. It sets policies to expand housing supply, streamline the construction of manufactured homes, and restrict large corporate investors from buying up single-family properties. Together, these reforms will help communities deliver more housing while creating new opportunities for architects to put their expertise to work.
There are several wins for the architectural community and AIA members that will likely expand the pipeline of projects, particularly in housing preservation, adaptive reuse, and new multifamily development.
Key reforms include:
- Expanded use of Community Development Block Grant funding for housing construction.
- New tools to convert vacant and abandoned buildings into affordable housing.
- A seven-year “Innovation Fund” to help communities increase housing supply.
- Critical updates to the HOME Investment Partnerships Program.
- More efficient environmental review processes.
- New HUD-developed best practice framework for zoning and land-use policies.
- Higher multifamily loan limits that better reflect today's housing costs.
- New HUD program that will fund organizations to manage whole-home repairs that improve accessibility, resilience, and energy efficiency.
- A directive to HUD to review the implementation of Build America, Buy America Act (BABA) requirements and to update its guidance to clarify these requirements for HOME-funded projects.
As implementation begins, AIA will continue advocating for policies that help the affordable housing community comply with BABA, increase housing supply, support architects, and help communities create more affordable, sustainable, and resilient places to live.
Learn more about AIA's federal advocacy.
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AIA's Small Project Design Knowledge Community has awarded grants to three nonprofits, supporting their collaborations with architects on impactful projects that serve and benefit their communities.
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