Real Estate and Apartment Associations Push Back on Biden Proposals

Real Estate and Apartment Associations Push Back on Biden Proposals

In a recent letter addressed to President Biden, a coalition of industry organizations expressed opposition to another White House initiative to impose a federal overlay of rental housing regulations.[i]

The associations affirmed their commitment to addressing the nation’s housing challenges and ensuring stability for renters across the country. However, they emphasized that significant obstacles persist in addressing rising housing costs and delivering sufficient housing supply.

As the letter states, “[I]mposing additional federal regulation on top of what is already an overly complicated set of regulations and housing provider-resident laws at the state and local levels will only cause housing providers to leave the market (especially small “mom-and-pop” housing providers), create disincentives for investors, and further exacerbate the supply shortage, ultimately hurting our nation’s renters.”

Specifically, the letter raises issues with new policies and regulations that could impact housing industry practices such as application and service fees, broadband billing arrangements, and the preservation of manufactured housing:

– The coalition opposes the adoption of “good cause” eviction policies (already adopted at the state level in Oregon and California), as they interfere with lease contracts and create imbalances in the housing provider-resident relationship.

– The letter argues against new regulations on rental housing fees, stating that myriad existing state and local laws adequately protect both renters and housing providers.

– The coalition opposes a proposed ban on broadband bulk billing arrangements, arguing that such arrangements benefit residents and support property operations.

– The letter supports the administration’s goal of preserving manufactured housing communities but raises concerns about excluding for-profit community owners from grant eligibility.

The letter is signed by several prominent associations in the real estate and housing sectors, including the CCIM Institute, Council for Affordable and Rural Housing, Institute of Real Estate Management, Manufactured Housing Institute, Mortgage Bankers Association, National Apartment Association, National Association of Home Builders, National Association of REALTORS®, National Leased Housing Association, and National Multifamily Housing Council.

Despite their concerns, the associations reiterate their commitment to collaborating with policymakers to address housing affordability challenges and ensure the stability of the rental housing sector.

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[i] https://www.irem.org/file%20library/globalnavigation/advocacy/coalitionletters/2024/coalition-letter-on-wh-fact-sheets-on-fees-and-bulk-billing.pdf