Moving even more swiftly than expected the Senate has cleared an omnibus housing bill and sent it along to the White House for the President's signature.

Among other things, the "American Homeownership and Economic Opportunity Act" grants local housing officials the authority to allow families receiving federal rental assistance to aggregate up to a year's worth of aid for use towards the downpayment and closing costs in buying a house instead of renting.

Recent studies have shown that downpayment costs are among the most significant barriers to homeownership. Three million families receive federal rental assistance under the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Section 8 voucher program.

The idea is based on a successful test project in the home district of Rep. Rick Lazio, R-N.Y., who authored many of the bill's provisions.

"More and more families across the country will now have a fighting chance to realize the American dream of owning a home," said Rep. Lazio, who gave up his House seat to run unsuccessfully for the Senate. But he may remain in Washington, perhaps as the new HUD secretary should George W. Bush actually become President.

The bill also includes provisions that will boost the construction and financing of more housing for elderly Americans and individuals with disabilities. And it provides additional housing opportunities for residents of rural America, Native Americans and Native Hawaiians.

In addition, it updates the federal manufactured housing regulatory regime to improve consumer protection and safety. Currently, more than 20 million people about 8 percent of the population reside full-time in more than 8 million manufactured houses.

Formerly known as trailers and mobile homes, manufactured houses are the only ones built to a federal building code, and the bill ensures that the rules, some of which are 25 years old, are updated on a regular basis. It also establishes a dispute resolution program so that buyers are not caught in the middle when manufacturers, retailers and installers blame each other for problems.

The measure passed the House by voice vote only last Tuesday. But then, it's been hanging around since April when the House first approved an even more sweeping bill. Actually, to be technical, it is the culmination of three and a half years of discussions with consumers, housing and industry advocates, and public policy makers.

Published: December 11, 2000

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When Lew Sichelman first started writing about housing in 1969, he was the youngest real estate writer in the country. Now, 37 years later, he's one of the oldest -- and most decorated. He has been rated the top housing columnist in the country by the National Association of Realtors as well as by his peers in the National Association of Real Estate Editors. Indeed, NAREE has recognized his work on numerous occasions. One year - due to his advancing age, he can't recall which one - he earned top honors in the annual NAREE Journalism Contest in three out of the four major writing categories. It was the first time one writer has won so many NAREE awards in a single year. Known for his ability to make even the most difficult topics understandable, Sichelman also has been honored by the National Association of Home Builders and the Mortgage Bankers Association. He began providing in-depth coverage of and consumer-oriented information about housing and housing finance at the Washington Daily News, where he was real estate editor. He held that same position for nine more years at the Washington Star, which purchased the News in 1972. The Star, a so-called "writer's newspaper" which also had the misfortune of being an evening paper, was put out of its misery in 1981, and Sichelman, who had begun self-syndicating his column in 1978, decided to become a full-time columnist. Today, his column, "The Housing Scene," is distributed by United Media to newspapers throughout the country. He also is on the staff of National Mortgage News, an independent newspaper which is considered the bible of the mortgage business. And he writes for numerous other publications, including MarketWatch.com, where he answers readers questions once a week, Sports Illustrated (don't ask), RealtyTimes.com, BigBuilder and others. Sichelman is married, the father of five and grandfather of eleven.