Legal scholars and practitioners generally discuss laws that affect housing within the context of real property, landlord–tenant law, mortgage law, laws that forbid housing discrimination, laws that attempt to preserve affordable housing, etc.
The following is a list of housing-related statutes in different countries.
Canada Name Date ScopeJurisdiction Description Miscellaneous Statutes (Housing Priority Initiatives) Amendment Act 2016 The Cooperative Housing Strategy Act2014Cooperative housing Ontario Condominium Act, 1998 1998 Condominiums Fairness is a Two-Way Street Act Heritage Places Protection Act Heritage properties Heritage Property Act Heritage properties Heritage Property Act Heritage properties Housing and Renewal Corporation Act2010 Jesuit Estates Act 1888 Land Purchase Act 1875 Land purchase Mortgage Brokerages, Lenders and Administrators Act National Housing Act Federal Ontario Heritage Act Property Transfer Tax Act Property transfer tax Protecting Condominium Owners Act, 2015 Real Estate and Business Brokers Act Régie du logement Residential Tenancies Act Residential tenancy Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 2006 Residential tenancyResidential Tenancies Act (Manitoba)1990Residential tenancy Strata Property Act Trespass to Property Act Trespassing Provincial codification of the common law. Used by private-property owners to keep individuals off their property.
New Zealand Name Date Scope Description Land Transfer Act 1952 1952 Land transfers Implements the Torrens title system of land registration
United Kingdom Name Date Scope Jurisdiction Description Land Transfer Act 1875 1875 Land transfers Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 1996 (omnibus legislation) Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 2002 Introduced common holds – a new way of owning land; similar to condominiums – into English and Welsh law.Artisans' and Labourers' Dwellings Improvement Act 18751875Building Act 19841984Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) Act 20222022Erection of Cottages Act 15881588Fire Safety Act 20212021Housing (Financial and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 19461946Housing (Financial Provisions) Act 1924Housing (Scotland) Act 20142014Housing Acts of 1930, 1933, 1935, 1969, 1980, 1985, 1988, 1996, 2004VariousHousing and Regeneration Act 20082008Establishes the Homes and Communities Agency, abolishes the Urban Regeneration Agency, the Commission for the New Towns and the Housing Corporation, regulates social housing, and also covers other aspects of housing law.UK Legislation, Housing and Regeneration Act 2008: Long title, accessed on 5 January 2025Housing of the Working Classes Act 1885, 1890, 1900VariousLand Charges Act 1972Land Registration Act 1925Land Registration Act 2002Law of Property Act 1925Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022Metropolitan Houseless Poor Act 1864Settled Land ActsSustainable and Secure Buildings Act 2004Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996Vagrancy Act 1824
United States Name Date Scope Jurisdiction Description Height of Buildings Act of 1899 1899 Height limits Created height restrictions because of concerns with new construction technology, notably steel, iron, and thin veneer facades. Height of Buildings Act of 1910 1910 Height limits Created height limits in Washington, D.C. Federal Home Loan Bank Act 1932 Mortgages Created Federal Home Loan Bank Board to charter and supervise federal savings and loans. Created Federal Home Loan Banks which lend to building and loan associations and other banking institutions to finance home mortgages. National Housing Act of 1934 1934 Mortgages part of New Deal to make housing and home mortgages more affordable. Created the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation (FSLIC). Housing Act of 1937 (aka Wagner-Steagall Act) 1937 Public Housing Provided for subsidies to be paid from the U.S. government to local public housing agencies (LHAs) to improve living conditions for low-income families. Housing Act of 1949 1949 Housing Act of 1954 1954 Public housing Was to provide 140,000 units of public housing with preferential treatment to families relocated for slum eradication or revitalization. Rumford Fair Housing Act 1963 Discrimination Preceded Fair Housing Act, but repealed. Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965 1965 Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 1968 Mortgages Established Ginnie Mae to expand availability of mortgage funds for moderate income families using government-guaranteed mortgage-backed securities. The new entity was split from the former Fannie Mae, which retained other functions. Fire Research and Safety Act of 1968 1968 Fire safety Fair Housing Act 1968 Discrimination Intended to protect the buyer or renter of a dwelling from seller or landlord discrimination. Housing and Urban Development Act of 1970 1970 Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Act (1970) 1970 Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 1974 Affordable housing Amended the Housing Act of 1937 to create Section 8 housing Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act 1974 Buyer protection Created to educate and protect prospective home buyers by adding disclosure requirements and eliminating kickbacks and referral fees to realty services. Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 1974 Fire safety Mobile Home Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 1974 Mobile home safety Established design and development safety standards for manufactured housing or prefabricated homes. Home Mortgage Disclosure Act 1975 MortgagesDiscrimination Community Reinvestment Act 1977 Alternative Mortgage Transaction Parity Act of 1982 1982 Mortgages McKinney–Vento Homeless Assistance Act 1987 Housing and Community Development Act of 1987 1987 Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992 1992 Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act of 1994 1994 Mortgages Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act of 1994 1994 Mortgages Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007 2007 Mortgages Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 2008 Commonly referred to as HERA, and designed primarily to address the subprime mortgage crisis of 2007 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 2009 Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 2009 Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009 2009 HOME STAR 2009 Mortgage Choice Act of 2013 2013 Mortgages Public Law 113-167 2014 Home Equity Theft Prevention Act2006A New York State law passed in 2006 to provide homeowners with information about the homeowner’s property, particularly when homeowners are in default on their mortgage payments
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