Housing ads would have to meet a very low-income standard

The bill would limit use of “deeply affordable” in housing ads and treat some inaccurate claims as false advertising. A home could be called deeply affordable only if it is affordable to a very low-income family under the referenced federal definition. False advertising applies to promotional material made by a person or entity with a financial interest in the home. The bill would not change eligibility for tax credits, grants, or other affordability programs with different definitions. Ads for homes in those programs would still follow these advertising rules. The rules would take effect 180 days after the bill becomes law.

The bill would require certain housing ads and government information to disclose or use details about deeply affordable homes. The rules cover ads for mixed-price buildings or developments and state or local government information about available deeply affordable homes, including public databases and promotional materials. Ads for developments with both market-rate and deeply affordable homes would have to give either the share of deeply affordable homes or the counts of deeply affordable and market-rate homes. The rules would take effect 180 days after the bill becomes law.