Early in February the U.S. House of Representatives voted unanimously to advance legislation that will expand opportunities for homeownership, especially for first-time home buyers. H.R. 3700, the "Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act," includes a number of initiatives that have strong support from Realtors, who hailed the vote as important progress for home buyers and sellers.
"This legislation will put homeownership in reach for more families, and we applaud Congress' work to take us there," said National Association of Realtors (NAR) president Tom Salomone. "We look forward to seeing it advance through the legislative process and to the President's desk, so it can be signed into law."
H.R.3700 takes aim at the difficulties in getting mortgages for condominiums. NAR has supported the inclusion of reforms to current Federal Housing Administration (FHA) restrictions on condominium financing. Condominiums are among the most affordable homeownership options for first-time home buyers, as well as lower income borrowers, but barriers to safe, affordable mortgage credit for condos still exist. H.R. 3700 takes a number of steps to address those concerns. These include efforts to make FHA's recertification process "substantially less burdensome," improving a process that is often costly and which condo developments must repeat every 24 months.
H.R. 3700 also lowers FHA's current owner-occupancy requirement (the number of units in the development owned by the people living in them) from 50 percent to 35 percent and requires FHA to replace existing policy on transfer fees with the less restrictive model already in place at the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
Additionally, the bill streamlines the process for exemptions to FHA's rule requiring that condominium projects have no more than 25 percent of the space dedicated to commercial use. This effort is in line with the Department of Housing and Urban Development's initiative to promote neighborhoods with a mix of residential housing, businesses and access to public transportation, which has become a trend in housing development today.
Finally, H.R. 3700 includes further support for rural housing loans and multifamily housing initiatives. The bill now moves on to the Senate for consideration.
"H.R. 3700 widens opportunities for creditworthy borrowers to become homeowners. It especially provides more options for first-time home buyers to achieve affordable homeownership. We look forward to the support of homeownership in this legislation and count on the President to sign it into legislation" said Karen Trolan, president of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors.
The Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR) is a professional trade organization representing over 4,000 REALTORS® and Affiliate members engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula and in the South Bay. SILVAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in Silicon Valley.
The term "REALTOR®" is a registered collective membership mark which identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and who subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.
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