American Homeownership Act

Key Points

• This bill targets large companies that own 50 or more single-family rental houses and big investment groups like hedge funds. It would stop them from using tax breaks that currently let them lower their tax bills by deducting interest and the aging value of their properties.
• The government would be banned from selling foreclosed homes or providing low-cost mortgage insurance to these big investors. This is meant to stop large corporations from outbidding regular families who are trying to buy a home.
• The money the government saves by ending these corporate tax breaks would be used to help regular people. It would create a fund to give first-time homebuyers up to $20,000 (or 10% of the home price) to help with down payments and closing costs.
• A large portion of the savings would also go toward building new affordable housing. At least half of the construction money must be used to build homes for families with very low incomes who struggle most to find a place to live.
• The bill also gives the government more power to stop companies from buying up too many houses in one neighborhood. If a company tries to buy enough property to own more than 30% of a local market, the government would step in to check for unfair competition.