For decades, July 31 has marked the traditional end of major policymaking on Beacon Hill. As formal sessions concluded, the Legislature’s work on the year’s biggest issues largely came to a close.

This year is different — and for housing, that’s welcome news.

Thanks to changes in legislative rules, lawmakers are continuing negotiations on major legislation, including a sweeping economic development bill that contains a number of critically important housing proposals.

Housing affordability remains one of Massachusetts’ greatest economic challenges. Families struggle to buy their first home. Employers face growing difficulty attracting workers. And communities across the Commonwealth are searching for ways to create housing while preserving the character that makes them unique.

There are no easy solutions. But throughout the 2025-2026 legislative session, lawmakers have increasingly focused on practical policies that expand housing opportunities, modernize local decision-making, strengthen consumer protections, and encourage responsible growth. Taken together, these efforts represent meaningful progress toward addressing the Commonwealth’s housing shortage.

Both the House and Senate have embraced reforms that would make it easier to build the housing Massachusetts needs.

The Senate’s economic development bill would allow duplexes by right wherever single-family homes are permitted, create a uniform statewide site plan review process, encourage the conversion of underutilized commercial buildings into housing, and strengthen incentives for Smart Growth zoning districts. Each proposal removes unnecessary barriers while preserving local planning and encouraging thoughtful development.

The House advanced many similar or complementary reforms, including statewide standards for site-plan review, permit extensions that provide greater certainty for housing developments and Yes in God’s Back Yard (YIGBY) provisions that open the door for underutilized religious properties to become new homes.

Earlier this month, the Legislature also approved important housing provisions in the Fiscal Year 2027 budget, including protections for development on existing nonconforming lots and buildings, streamlined zoning variances that recognize the public benefit of new housing and authorization for municipalities to provide zoning hearing notices electronically.

Individually, these reforms may appear technical. Collectively, they help create a more predictable, efficient process for delivering housing while reducing unnecessary costs that ultimately affect buyers and renters alike.

The Legislature has also recognized that creating more housing must go hand in hand with ensuring that every resident has fair access to it.

One of the session’s most important achievements for the Massachusetts Association of REALTORS® has been advancing mandatory fair housing education for all Massachusetts real estate licensees. Realtors have long been required to complete fair housing training. Extending those educational standards across the profession helps ensure every consumer benefits from knowledgeable, well-trained professionals and reinforces Massachusetts’ longstanding commitment to equal housing opportunity.

Another important proposal that may become law would establish training for local planning and zoning board members. Local officials make decisions that shape the future of every community, often while serving as volunteers. Providing them with consistent education on land use, zoning and legal requirements will lead to more informed decisions, greater consistency across municipalities and a stronger partnership between communities and those working to address local housing needs.

This session has also demonstrated that lawmakers understand the importance of pursuing solutions that expand opportunity rather than increase costs.

The Legislature has declined to advance any proposal authorizing local-option real estate transfer taxes or rent control. These decisions reflect an encouraging recognition that improving affordability begins with increasing housing supply and encouraging investment in new homes.

Massachusetts is already one of the nation’s most expensive housing markets. Nearly 80% of Massachusetts households cannot afford the median-priced home. Even relatively small increases in housing costs can push thousands of prospective buyers out of the market. The National Association of Home Builders estimates that every $1,000 increase in the price of a home prices hundreds of Massachusetts households out of homeownership.

With conference committee negotiations continuing, lawmakers have the opportunity to end the third session in a row where significant housing reforms are adopted, following the Affordable Homes Act in 2024 and the MBTA Communities Act in 2022. Encouraging housing production and zoning reform while including mandatory fair housing education and local board training provisions in the final economic development package would represent another significant step toward making housing more attainable for future generations.

The Commonwealth’s housing challenges were decades in the making, and they will not be solved overnight. But meaningful progress deserves recognition.

The 2025-2026 legislative session has shown what is possible when policymakers focus on practical reforms that encourage housing production, strengthen consumer protections, and improve the processes that shape our communities.

As the Legislature continues its work, Massachusetts has every reason to be optimistic about what comes next.

Theresa Hatton is the CEO of the Massachusetts Association of REALTORS®.