What We’ve Seen on the Housing Front 2025: State Policy Highlights and Trends

Across the country, housing rose to the top of legislative agendas in 2025, with legislators introducing 412 housing reform bills and enacting 124 pro‑housing laws, including 104 in the first half of the year alone. (Mercatus Center, 2025).

The year's state-level activity underscores a fundamental shift: housing policy is no longer a niche planning issue, but a central focus of legislative agendas across the country.

State Actions to Expand Housing Supply

From zoning and permitting reforms to accessory dwelling unit legalization, parking minimums, and transit-oriented upzoning, states are deploying a wide array of strategies to increase housing supply and affordability.

Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)

Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) continued to play a central role in state housing policy. States such as Arkansas and Iowa enacted or expanded ADU reforms, curbing restrictive local bans and simplifying approval processes to support incremental, neighborhood-scale housing growth.

Reduce Parking Requirements

Alongside ADUs, several states moved to reduce parking requirements that act as barriers to housing production. Connecticut, Montana, Colorado, and Washington advanced reforms limiting or eliminating minimum parking mandates.

Modification to CEQA

California took direct steps to expand housing production by modifying the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), long viewed as a barrier to housing production. Two bipartisan bills were signed into law, allowing qualifying housing projects — particularly those consistent with adopted local plans or located in urban infill areas — to bypass prolonged environmental review.

These changes are expected to shorten project timelines and reduce development costs while maintaining core environmental protections. As housing costs continue to rise, California's actions reflect a willingness to revisit long-standing processes to accelerate housing production.

Expanding Housing through transportation-oriented development

At the center of California's housing agenda was a landmark measure aimed at expanding housing options through transit-oriented development. Authored by Senator Scott Wiener, the bill requires local governments to identify and upzone areas around major transit stops for higher-density housing, ensuring new development occurs where people already have access to jobs, schools, and public transportation.

This bill accelerates approvals for qualifying projects, limits local barriers that can delay construction, and strengthens the state's enforcement tools when jurisdictions fail to meet their housing obligations. By linking housing production to transit access, the law seeks to reduce long commutes, lower transportation costs, and create more sustainable neighborhoods — reflecting a broader shift in California toward prioritizing both housing supply and access to opportunity.

Building Code Reform and Bipartisan Momentum

In 2025, a growing number of states advanced building code reforms to unlock missing middle housing through single-stair legislation. 

Single-Stair Legislation

Oregon took a multi-track approach, approving an optional building code appendix allowing single-stair buildings up to four stories while also requiring the adoption of rules permitting single-stair construction up to six stories under specified safety standards.

New Hampshire enacted legislation allowing single-stair residential buildings up to four stories, subject to floor-area limits and fire-safety requirements. Montana passed legislation revising the state building code to allow single-stairwells in certain buildings under defined safety conditions.

Bipartisan momentum accelerated nationwide in 2025. According to The Pew Charitable Trusts, seven states advanced bipartisan action on single-stair apartment buildings in a single year. Colorado, Montana, and Texas have passed and signed legislation allowing single-stair designs; Maine is in the process of doing so; and Hawai'i and Maryland will convene formal groups to study the reform.

Texas's adoption of single-stair reforms fits within a broader, bipartisan housing strategy enacted in 2025 focused on improving affordability and increasing production; a detailed breakdown of those measures is available in APA's earlier 2025 state roundup.

Together, these actions underscore two defining trends in 2025 housing policy: a growing willingness to modernize building codes and a strengthening bipartisan consensus around the need to expand housing supply. From single-stair reforms that revisit long-standing technical standards to broader legislative packages aimed at improving affordability and production, states are prioritizing zoning reform for housing.

Regional Planning and Coordinated Policy Approaches

Some states went beyond single-policy fixes to address structural coordination between housing, infrastructure, and planning. While expanding infrastructure can sometimes act as a constraint on housing development — even when building codes are updated — states like Colorado established the Regional Planning Roundtable Commission to better coordinate housing with infrastructure investments, aligning with research that advocates connecting housing policy with broader planning systems.

Likewise, Utah's creation of the BUILD Coordinating Council sought to align housing, infrastructure, and economic development — another example of multi-agency planning approaches that expand the reach of traditional housing policy.

Refining State Housing Reforms and Preemption

Across the political spectrum, debates continued over the extent of state preemption of local authority and the boundaries of home rule.

In Florida, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 1730, which amends and expands the Live Local Act to clarify statewide preemption of certain zoning and land use regulations for affordable housing and mixed-use residential development. This bill requires counties and municipalities to authorize multifamily and mixed‑use residential uses in commercial, industrial, and flexibly zoned areas, prohibits local governments from imposing certain restrictions on allowable development, and refines the application of preemption in planned developments and mixed‑use projects. The bill also includes provisions related to administrative approvals and limits on building moratoria, further restricting local barriers to housing production.

Even in states that have already enacted significant housing reforms, legislative activity has continued as policymakers refine and build on earlier actions. Even as states continue working on reforms to zoning and land use codes, they are tackling issues related to the process for permitting and review process. In California, for example, lawmakers approved additional legislation in 2025 to clarify implementation, streamline approvals, and address remaining procedural barriers following prior landmark housing bills.

Together, these efforts underscore that housing reform is increasingly viewed as an iterative process rather than a one-time legislative fix.

Looking Ahead: Lessons from a Year of Housing Reform

Last year, we saw an extraordinary level of activity on housing policy across states — a mix of enacted reforms, emerging proposals, advocacy momentum, and growing consensus that outdated regulatory frameworks are a core barrier to housing supply.

Beyond individual policies, states are increasingly integrating housing reforms with broader planning and infrastructure efforts. Colorado's Regional Planning Roundtable Commission and Utah's BUILD Coordinating Council will illustrate how connecting housing policy with regional development initiatives can amplify the impact of legislative reforms.

Even with record levels of legislative activity, state work on housing reforms is accelerating. Policymakers are testing a variety of strategies while strengthening the capacity of planners and local officials and integrating reforms with broader systems. Clear standards and consistent processes are becoming central, underscoring that lasting housing reforms depend on coordinated action.

2025 offers a roadmap: well-designed policies, combined with thoughtful execution, can boost housing supply — and sustaining this momentum will be key in the years ahead.

Top image: iStock / Getty Images Plus - Thomas DeWever