House Financial Services chair backs limits on corporate homeownership but drops mandated seven-year resale

The chair of the House Committee on Financial Services said President Trump raised concerns in the State of the Union about institutional investors buying single-family homes and competing with individual homebuyers.

The chair told lawmakers that "it is an issue" even if it affects a small number of houses and that the goal is to "find a way to put some limitation on that without disrupting capital flows into housing." He said one of the House’s key amendments removes a Senate provision that would have required newly constructed homes owned by institutional investors to be sold within seven years.

Congressman French Hill questioned whether disallowing corporate ownership is practical, arguing institutional owners "are able to renovate properties at scale," provide liquidity in distressed markets and increase professionally managed rental supply. He warned that strict bans could "hurt the rental market" and require many workarounds that may outweigh potential benefits.

The chair acknowledged the challenge and said drafters want exemptions that preserve capital for single-family construction and build-to-rent projects. He also cited concerns from former U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement that a mandate forcing sale after seven years "appears unconstitutional" and could amount to a taking, which the House amendment aims to avoid.

The discussion was framed as balancing two policy goals: responding to public concern about corporate buyers of family homes while preserving the flow of investment that supports housing supply.

The exchange ended without a recorded committee vote on the amendment in the provided transcript; the chair described the amendment approach but did not report an outcome or final text in these remarks.