A Look Inside the Issues Shaping Housing Finance #MISMOSummit
(From left: Brendan McKay, Rachel Kelley)
RESTON, Va.,– As Congress and federal agencies work on the lending landscape, MBA’s Rachel Kelley and the Broker Action Coalition’s Brendan McKay discussed what changes are on the horizon and what they mean for lenders here at the MISMO Fall Summit.
Kelley, vice president of legislative affairs with MBA, noted some recent legislative successes for the industry, including stopping the abusive use of mortgage credit trigger leads and passage of the VA Home Loan Program Reform Act. “Those were both passed last year and signed by the president. Those are both huge,” she said.
Kelley also brought up “the biggest piece of housing legislation passed in 70-plus years,” the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, which became federal law on July 11, 2026. She said the law incorporates more than 60 pieces of individual legislation, 36 of which are bipartisan. “That is amazing in this Congress…to find so much common ground. Because this is something the American people want.”
McKay, who also co-owns McKay Mortgage Co. in Bethesda, Md., agreed with Kelley about how important the 21st Century ROAD to Housing law is. “I hope everyone walks out of this a little bit more excited and talking more about the law, because it is a really big deal,” he said. “It’s not sexy, and the president didn’t sign it, which didn’t help get the general excitement levels of it of it up, which is a bummer. But it’s a big deal.”
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act included both residential and commercial/multifamily provisions, including increasing FHA multifamily loan limits that had not been raised in 2003. “This does help affordability,” Kelley said. “This is something MBA is really proud of.”
The law also addressed manufactured modular housing. “I have long believed that manufactured housing needs to be completely rebranded,” McKay said. “And when I talk to people, whether it’s within or outside of the industry, I think way too many people think manufactured housing is mobile housing, mobile homes, or something like that. And I probably don’t need to tell most of the people in this room, but manufactured housing simply means that the home is built in a factory rather than on site. This was not always true, and it’s not always completely true now, but oftentimes, manufactured housing is not only better built than stick-built homes, but it is almost always going to be cheaper. Because you can control the elements, you don’t have to worry about weather and all these different factors. You’re simply building the majority of the house in a factory and then transporting it to the site.”
McKay said the legislation’s provisions that make it easier to build manufacturing housing cannot be overstated. “Some of these things they’ve been trying to get done since the 1980s, so I don’t think it’s going to be a ‘snap of the finger’ fix, but I think you are going to see a large uptick in manufactured housing being built in many parts of this country, which we need. More housing and more affordable housing, and this bill checks both of those boxes in a big way. And I think all of you guys are going to see the benefit of it. It’s just going to take a few years for it to happen,” he said.
Elections matter, Kelley and McKay agreed. “Elections absolutely matter,” McKay said. “Go vote. The good news if you care about housing is that no matter who wins, housing is on the menu. Housing is and always has been bipartisan. Republicans want their constituents in homes, and so do Democrats. So this makes our jobs easier in some ways because, regardless of who’s in control, they are relying on our expertise. And the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act was a big deal, but a lot of legislators see it as step one.”
