Moore, Yakym Introduce Legislation to Support Surviving Spouses of Veterans

Moore, Yakym Introduce Legislation to Support Surviving Spouses of Veterans

Today, Representative Gwen Moore (D-WI-04) and Representative Rudy Yakym (R-IN-02) introduced the Veterans Surviving Spouse Parity Act to help surviving spouses of veterans access housing programs that benefit first-time homebuyers. Under current law, surviving spouses of veterans can access VA home loans but not Mortgage Credit Certificate and Mortgage Revenue Bond programs. The Members' legislation secures parity for these surviving spouses.

This legislation was inspired by Rep. Moore's constituent, who is a surviving spouse who qualified for a VA home loan, but was not eligible for the Mortgage Credit Certificate.

"Surviving spouses of veterans made their own sacrifices for our country, and we can better utilize existing resources to support them. Our bipartisan bill helps them access key resources that can make homeownership more affordable. I thank my constituent for inspiring this important bill," said Rep. Moore.

"This country owes everything to the men and women who fight for our freedom, and to the surviving spouses who carry on without them. We owe it to these families to give them stability, and that starts with owning a home." Rep. Yakym said. "This bipartisan bill closes that gap, so surviving spouses can access the same homeownership resources their veteran spouses could. I thank Rep. Moore for her leadership on this bill and for standing up for these families."

"For nearly 20 years, state housing finance agencies' have been better able to help veterans purchase homes through their Mortgage Revenue Bond (MRB) and Mortgage Credit Certificate (MCC) programs because of a one-time exemption to those programs' first-time home buyer requirement," said Stockton Williams, Executive Director of the National Council of State Housing Agencies. "We commend Representatives Gwen Moore (D-WI) and Rudy Yakym (R-IN) for introducing legislation to extend this benefit to the spouses of those members of the armed forces who made the ultimate sacrifice."

"The National Association of REALTORS® proudly supports the bipartisan Veterans Surviving Spouse Parity Act because the families of those who made the ultimate sacrifice deserve the same opportunities as the veterans they stood beside. By extending eligibility for Mortgage Revenue Bond and Mortgage Credit Certificate programs to qualifying surviving spouses, this legislation removes an unnecessary barrier to affordable homeownership and helps ensure these families have access to the housing resources they have earned. We applaud Representatives Moore and Yakym for advancing this commonsense, bipartisan solution that honors our nation's military families while expanding pathways to homeownership," said Shannon McGahn, Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy Officer, National Association of REALTORS®.

Congress provides each state with an amount of private activity bonds (PABs), which include MRB and MCC programs issued by housing finance agencies to support homeownership for families earning below 115% of area median income. MRBs are tax-exempt bonds that help fund below-market interest-rate mortgages for qualifying homebuyers. MCCs are issued directly to qualifying homebuyers, who are then entitled to a non-refundable federal tax credit annually. MCCs and MRBs lower costs for low- and moderate-income homeowners, which can make sustainable homeownership possible. To qualify, buyers must typically be first-time homeowners. However, there are some exceptions to this rule, including for veterans. This bill creates an exception for surviving spouses, too.

Endorsing Organizations: National Council of State Housing Agencies, Veterans Associate of Real Estate Professionals, National Association of REALTORS®, and Paralyzed Veterans of America.