Assembly Republicans Announce Bills to Support Affordable Housing

Homes on N. 20th St. in Milwaukee’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Assembly Republicans proposed a package of bills they say would help increase affordable housing throughout Wisconsin on Tuesday. Rep. Rob Brooks (R-Saukville) said he hopes to build on the success of bills passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Tony Evers in 2023. Those measures created and expanded state loan programs and were supported with over $500 million in state funds.

At a news conference in the state Capitol Tuesday morning, Brooks said GOP lawmakers anticipate cooperation from the governor’s office once again. The authors have worked with Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) on many of the bills, he said, and have put the bills on a fast track with hearings to take place soon.

“We hope to get out more affordable housing throughout the state, and when I refer to affordable housing, I want to be clear, we’re not talking about subsidized housing. We’re talking about affordable housing,” Brooks said. “What I’m talking about is the housing stock that was built just a generation or two ago. We’re talking about small ranch homes, some of those homes built without garages or alleyways or detached garages.”

Seven bills were drafted as of Tuesday, but Brooks said there could be up to 10 in the final package. “It’s kind of a fluid process right now,” he said.

According to the National Association of Realtors, in 2024 the average age of a first-time homebuyer in the U.S. reached an all-time high of 38, said Tom Larson, president and CEO of the Wisconsin Realtors Association. He said that the average price of a home in Wisconsin is $340,000, and that over the last 15 years, Wisconsin has built fewer housing units per capita than the national average.

“Housing prices continue to rise faster than wages, and the longer it takes somebody to purchase a home, the longer it takes for them to build wealth, the longer it takes for them to establish roots in our community, which has a direct impact on our labor force and our economy,” Larson said. “Wisconsin’s [housing] affordability is worse than any of our surrounding neighbors. It’s worse than Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan and Iowa.”

He said the Wisconsin real estate industry is “cautiously optimistic that the passage of these bills will help address Wisconsin’s affordability crisis.”

New WHEDA programs

One bipartisan bill, coauthored by Rep. Jessie Rodriguez (R-Oak Creek) and Sen. Jesse James (R-Thorp) would create a Workforce Home Loan Program through the WHEDA. The bill has two Democratic coauthors as well: Sen. LaTonya Johnson (D-Milwaukee) and Rep. Amaad Rivera-Wagner (D-Green Bay).

Rep. Dan Knodl (R-Germantown), who is also an author on the home loan legislation, said the bill is intended to help Wisconsinites who want to become homeowners.

“Instead of putting down roots, people have been stuck in renting situations and are unable to build equity or stability, so, how do we do that to help them get into that first step of home ownership?” Knodl asked rhetorically.

The program would allow first-time home buyers access to second mortgage loans of up to $60,000 at 0% interest. The loans could be used to help with down payments and closing costs. Knodl said the repayment terms would be flexible and tailored to household income, and there would be the option to defer payments for low-income families.

He said that the program would sustain itself through the repayments borrowers make.

“Home ownership is about more than buying a house. It’s about building stronger communities, investing in schools and growing local economies,” Knodl said.

Another bill proposed by Rep. Dave Murphy (D-Greenville) would require the agency to establish a grant program to support developers who want to convert multifamily housing to condominiums.

WHEDA would be required to direct $10 million from the Main Street Housing Rehabilitation revolving loan fund to the grant program, which would cover up to $50,000 in reasonable attorney fees, state and local permitting fees, and any other costs associated with the conversion.

Changes to help speed up, support development

A handful of the Republicans’ proposals would change laws to support more development and  standardize the process for a variety of housing developments.

Rep. David Armstrong (R-Rice Lake) has proposed creating residential tax increment districts, or TIDs. A TID is a financial tool  municipalities can use to designate certain areas for economic development and use the district’s property tax growth to help pay for improvements to the area.

Armstrong said the TIDs are one of the biggest tools that municipalities have to do something about housing, and his bill would help address the biggest barrier to building more workforce housing — the cost of subdivision infrastructure, including sidewalks, curb and gutter, water, sewer and utilities.

His bill would establish a “pay-as-you-go” TID, applying a portion of the tax increment from new homes  to offset the cost of subdivision development.

“In my area, a starter home is $400,000,” Armstrong said. “That’s not a starter home. That’s not what my workforce can afford.”

Armstrong also has a second bill that would require communities to align  comprehensive plans and the zoning ordinances. He said it would provide clarity and predictability for municipalities, builders and developers.

Rep. Joy Goeben (R-Hobart) has authored a bill to provide a statewide framework for local regulations of “accessory dwelling units” — secondary housing units located on the same property as a primary residence.

“Currently, Wisconsin lacks a unified approach, resulting in a confusing, patchwork of regulation that varies across local governments,” Goeben said. She said her bill “addresses that confusion” and gives property owners a pathway to add accessory units. “This legislation strikes a balance, ensuring individual property owners can efficiently add housing while maintaining reasonable community standards,” she said.

According to the bill draft, local regulations would be allowed to limit the size and height of an accessory unit , require that a unit satisfy current setback and lot coverage requirements, and prohibit units built  after the effective date of the bill from being turned into short-term rentals.

Rep. Rob Kreibich (R-New Richmond) is proposing a bill that would set out a process for local governments and developers seeking to build a subdivision, including providing an opportunity for developers to meet informally with local representatives before submitting plans. He said the bill is meant to place local governments and developers on the same page “from the beginning of the process all the way through to the end of the process.”

“Over the next five years, we’re gonna probably need about 140,000 housing units in the state of Wisconsin. At the current pace, we’re not going to even get close,” Kriebich said. “Delays and miscommunication oftentimes leads to delays or no subdivisions whatsoever, so this will clean up that process and again allow some tweaks in statutes to fast track new home construction in the state of Wisconsin.”

Delay new building codes

Rep. William Penterman (R-Hustisford) is seeking to delay the deadline for the implementation of new codes for commercial and multi-family residential buildings. The code changes are the first major updates to the codes in over a decade, and are being implemented following a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that struck down lawmakers’ ability to indefinitely block administrative rules.

“Unfortunately, there was a recent Supreme Court ruling that will mandate that the new building code need to go into effect, and while we’re not here to prevent that, we need to have clarity as to when exactly that’s going to happen,” Penterman said.

Currently, the Department of Safety and Professional Services has said that all commercial building plans submitted to DSPS for approval must meet the standards set in the upgraded code starting on Oct. 1, though the new code technically went into effect on Sept. 1.

Penterman has proposed a bill that would delay that requirement until April 2026.

“This gives businesses, commercial buildings, residential housing and municipalities more time to review these plans, make sure everything’s all set to go,” Penterman said.

Assembly Republicans announce bills aimed at supporting affordable housing in Wisconsin was originally published by the Wisconsin Examiner.