Message from Rob Wittman:
Dear Friends and Neighbors,
Last week, I had the opportunity to speak with realtors in the First District about the challenges facing current and prospective homeowners. Every Virginian and American deserves the opportunity to own a home, and I am working to make that a reality. I am committed to working across the aisle to address the challenges facing current and prospective homeowners.
Legislation I’ve supported aimed at lowering the cost of housing:
- Housing for the 21st Century Act
- Increases housing in opportunity zones.
- Streamlines environmental reviews for certain housing activities.
- Incentivizes more housing supply to be built, ultimately increasing home ownership access and lowering housing costs.
- More Homes on the Market Act
- Raises the capital gains tax exclusion on the sale of a primary residence from $250,000 to $500,000 for single filers, and from $500,000 to $1 million for joint filers and indexes the thresholds to inflation.
- Encourages Americans to put their homes on the market, increasing the supply of available housing.
- Uplifting First-Time Homebuyers Act of 2025
- Allows first-time homebuyers to withdraw up to $50,000 from their IRA retirement accounts penalty-free, up from the current $10,000 limit.
- Helps increase the ability for first-time homebuyers to purchase a home.
- Saving the American Dream Act
- Creates a multi-agency task force dedicated to addressing barriers to home ownership and reducing the cost of renting or buying a home.
- The task force would focus on coordinating housing finance programs, construction costs, and addressing local regulatory barriers to housing production.
- Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act
- Reforms the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program.
- Addresses structural issues such as allocation methods, eligibility criteria, and incentives for housing production.
- Increases the LIHTC allocation from 9% to 12%
- Lowers the bond financing threshold, making it easier to finance affordable housing projects.
- Incentivizes the creation of new affordable housing units.
- Housing Supply Frameworks Act
- Directs the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to publish guidelines and best practices for state and local zoning frameworks.
- Reduces regulatory barriers, such as height limits, setbacks, restrictions on duplexes, and parking minimums.
I want your input! If you have ideas related to housing affordability, please don’t hesitate to reach out to my office and share them. Your experiences help shape the legislation and initiatives that I support in Congress.
Sincerely,
Rob Wittman
Member of Congress, Virginia’s 1st District