The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act represents the most significant federal housing-policy package in years. Yet it should not be mistaken for a large new housing appropriation. The law creates tools, modernizes programs, reduces selected barriers, and changes what local governments and housing organizations are allowed to do. Whether it produces meaningful results in Forsyth County will depend on funding, federal rulemaking, local readiness, and a sustained commitment to equity.
The Act strongly validates the approach developed by the Forsyth County Humane Housing Network. HHN treats housing as a connected system extending from Urgency—homelessness prevention and shelter—through Stability, Permanency, and ultimately Thriving through homeownership, asset retention, and community wealth. It organizes action around three interlocking strategies: Prevention, Preservation, and Production. The ROAD Act contains provisions relevant to each of these areas.
Several changes could directly support local work. Reforms to the HOME program recognize community land trusts, shared-equity homeownership, and a broader range of homebuyers. Communities may use a portion of Community Development Block Grant funding for new affordable-housing construction. New or expanded authorities address whole-home repairs, vacant and deteriorated properties, public-land inventories, pre-approved housing plans, small-dollar mortgages, voucher inspections, rural rental preservation, and manufactured or modular housing. Together, these provisions could support HHN priorities such as gentle-density infill, homeowner repair, community ownership, faster voucher lease-up, and preservation of existing affordable housing.
The Act also carries important limitations. It authorizes no automatic increase in federal funding. Attractive pilot programs may remain unavailable until Congress appropriates money and federal agencies complete regulations. Using existing CDBG dollars for construction could reduce funding for repairs, public services, or homelessness prevention. Expanding HOME homeownership eligibility to households earning up to 100 percent of Area Median Income may help workforce households, but it could also shift scarce resources away from families with the deepest needs.
That concern is especially important in Forsyth County. The local housing assessment identifies a shortage of more than 25,000 rental and ownership units, including an estimated deficit of 8,112 affordable rental units for households at or below 30 percent of Area Median Income. Increasing the total number of homes is necessary, but unit production alone will not resolve this deeply unequal market.
HHN should therefore retain its current framework while strengthening its implementation strategy. The network should track federal appropriations and rulemaking, prepare a pipeline of ready projects, complete a public-land inventory, establish local deep-affordability priorities, and require anti-displacement protections for federally supported developments. It should also ensure that expanded shelter flexibility does not reduce prevention and rapid-rehousing resources.
Success should be measured not only by units built, but by who remains housed, gains assets, and shares in neighborhood investment. The ROAD Act creates leverage, not certainty. Its greatest value will come when federal tools are combined with dedicated local funding, resident leadership, strong data systems, and clear accountability. Used carefully, the Act can help Forsyth County move from another round of planning toward durable progress—from urgency to thriving.
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