Congressman Chip Roy (R) introduced the Ban Chinese Communist and Islamist Home Ownership Act today, legislation aimed at prohibiting certain foreign governments, entities, and individuals from purchasing housing in the United States.
According to Roy's office, the bill would ban foreign adversaries from acquiring American residential property and requires covered foreign owners to divest existing housing holdings within two years. The legislation would apply broadly to housing stock, including single-family homes, apartments, and co-ops.
"American homes belong to American families - not the Chinese Communist Party, foreign Islamists, or our geopolitical foes," said Rep. Roy when announcing the proposal.
The legislation identified several categories of covered foreign owners, including foreign countries of concern and their citizens, designated foreign adversaries, state sponsors of terrorism, foreign entities tied to those governments, and corporations with ownership stakes connected to those groups or individuals.
"While Americans struggle to afford housing, hostile regimes are buying up our land and neighborhoods," said Roy. "This bill slams the door on foreign adversaries owning American housing and forces them to sell what they already control. We're putting America's homes back in American hands."
Under the proposal, any housing divested under the law would be required to be sold to U.S. citizens.
The bill comes amid broader national debates over foreign ownership of American land and property, particularly involving concerns about Chinese investment in U.S. real estate, farmland, and infrastructure. Several states, including Texas, have also considered or passed restrictions targeting foreign land ownership tied to adversarial governments.
The Ban Chinese Communist and Islamist Home Ownership Act reflects escalating political attention on foreign ownership of American property, combining national security concerns with ongoing debate over housing affordability and economic sovereignty.
