Senate passes 85-5 housing bill capping investor home purchases
What's next: The House is expected to vote later this week on the bipartisan measure backed by President Donald Trump.
The Senate voted 85-5 on Monday to pass a bipartisan affordable housing bill that would limit how many single-family homes major investors can buy, after months of negotiations between the House and Senate. Lawmakers framed the measure as a response to high home prices, scarce starter homes and a national housing shortage of more than 4.7 million homes. The final deal kept a 350-unit cap on investor holdings but dropped an earlier provision that would have forced investors to sell newly built units above that limit within seven years. Supporters including Sens. Tim Scott and Elizabeth Warren argued the package also aims to boost housing supply by reducing barriers to development. The House is expected to take up the bill later this week.