Real Estate the Ramsey Way - This Executive Order Could Reduce Home Prices

Episode Date: September 1, 2026

Dave Ramsey and real estate expert Brian Buffini discuss how the ROAD to Housing Act is already impacting the housing market and break down another major piece of legislation that could bring home prices down. Next steps: ·   🏠Not sure what to do next when buying or selling your home? Check out our ⁠⁠Real Estate Home Base⁠⁠ for free tools and resources to guide your next steps. ·   🏠And if you’re ready to buy or sell your home, ⁠⁠connect with a RamseyTrusted® real estate agent⁠⁠. They’re experts who’ll help you confidently navigate homeownership the way we teach. Explore more from Ramsey Network: 💸 The Ramsey Show Highlights 🧠 The Dr. John Delony Show 🍸 Smart Money Happy Hour 💰 George Kamel 📈 EntreLeadership   Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy

The Road to Housing Act, I want to start with that. I'm going to take part of the credit with Brian Buffini for having at least sparked an idea in Washington because what it was supposed to do, the primary thing was to keep these institutional buyers from buying the houses, getting them off the market. Yep. And it did some of that for sure. It was definitely watered down, right? It wasn't a nothing burger, but it wasn't the bill we were hoping for.

They have eased the restraints for local communities to be able to help build more homes. That's a big deal. That is a big deal. California didn't listen. Thanks, but. You know, it's 72 degrees there today. I got bad taxes and I can't build a house, but it's 72. That's what I'm hanging on to, you know?

But I'll just say, now I will say that they didn't get the cap gains thing done. No. They did get a restriction on the big companies and what's happening. These companies who bought for two years, they bought 25% of all homes in America. They are now trying to divest themselves. So what they're doing is leasing out these homes, and now they've come out within incentive programs, okay, we'll lease you the house and we'll give you a credit towards buying it if you buy it because they're trying to get out of it. So for someone trying to create a down payment,

the market rate, because rents have come down. So typically when they do a lease option, there's a premium on the lease. They charge more for the lease on the home and then you get a credit for a down payment. Well, you kind of paid extra for that. Now what's happened is because the rents have come down across the board. They're being forced to rent these new homes, but they're giving credits to people who say, if you sign a one-year lease or an 18-monthly-year lease, we'll give you $10,000 towards a down payment and then you buy it from us. So that's- But the economics are forcing that, not this bill.

No, no, that's not the bill. Because the bill didn't cause them to divest. No. It just stopped them from buying. Buying more. So they can't-a-hous-house on your street. So now because they're these big black stones and whatever else, they're like, I can't buy more, well, I'm going to get rid of what I have.

So they're going to slowly get rid of what they have. The second thing is- That's an unintended consequence. I didn't see that coming. No, it's good. And the next thing that's happening is the midterms are coming. All real estate is local and all politics are too. So now they're actually talking about actually doing an executive order in the next couple of weeks on the capital gains thing that didn't get put through the first time. Really?

Can you do an executive order on taxes? You know, so the way you do it is you put it into the reconciliation bill. You don't make it a permanent change to the tax laws. You follow? Oh, as always. It's not a permanent thing. So what it could do. Now, the downside could create a shock of people going, I'm going to get my money.

So, yeah, right quick. 250 per person, $500,000 for a couple put in term. Today. Yeah, that's today. That started in 1997. They're talking about moving it to a million, okay? If it was indexed for inflation, it would be $620,000 each. But if it's a million, how motivated do you think then boomers would be to downsize?

Here's the thing. So now you're going, I have a rental property. I have a vacation home. I'm in a big house that I don't need anymore. Not just personal residence, everything. Everything. And so now it's like, I'm going to. going to, here's what I'm doing. I'm going to put it down. I was only going to get a $500,000 drop.

Now I'm going to get a million dollar drop. And here's the gift and here's the hope for the folks out there. No, if it's a rental house, it's a million dollars versus nothing. Yeah. Yeah. And so now what you're looking at is a potential of getting that discount. Again, it'll go year by year. So it's a reconciliation bill. I think it'll soften prices because I'm like, hey, I'll take 50 grand off my price. If I can be assured of the $9.50 on that. Yep. You know, so. So they're looking at doing that in the next reconciliation bill. I just got to call on that today. Okay.

If that actually happens, that won't. Even if it's temporary, if you put a million dollars on the houses that I own that are rentals and I've got a million dollars worth of gain, I'll sell them. Well, that's what they're trying to do. Because they know they've got a big problem on our hands. And young people can't buy homes. They're feeling disconsolate. You know, you were on, what was it, June of this year with us?

Yeah. We were on, okay, so it's been a few months. Has anything big shifted even in the last 90 days? It's gotten worse. Has it? Well, you're a lot of sunshine. Yeah. There you go.

Yep. Piped a little Irish sunshine in here. Hey, I'm from a land who's number one export is alcohol. Okay. There's a reason. Okay, what are a couple of those points? And we'll probably dig into them more in the segments, but I'm just curious. So what we're seeing is this increase in under 30s, living at home.

Yeah, going back. 39% up to 49% of people. people under 30, you know? In 90 days? No, no. So that's in the last six years, but that's gone up three points this summer. So kids are coming out of college who normally would graduate and get a job and stay at the college town. They all moved home.

Yep. So this year we've seen a higher percentage of these college kids who got graduated, came back home and didn't go home. Well, and this is not speaking for all Gen Z by any means, but there was a clip going around viral of this girl. She was probably 24 and she is just having a cow in her car about how she is not getting a hundred and $50,000 offer for these jobs and on and on and on and on. People are reacting like, you're basically two years out of college. No, you're not going to be making that. So all of it to say, they have this belief of still some of them of what they should be

making slash what my life should look like and then reality hits. And it's like, no, you're making 65, 50. A buddy of mine sent his son over for an interview at the company. Now, I don't interview people. It comes along and the kid goes, I wanted my contract and offer for an executive position within two years. And that's what his professor told him. And I said, I got room in the mailroom.

I was like, I don't know where it's back yet. Do you know what a mop looks like? Wow. It's hard, yep. Wow. Not making the incomes they think. And then they try to get in the housing market. They can't.

Rentals are up, yep. A lot of these calls could have been solved by connecting with a Ramsey trusted agent. We don't want you to make the same mistake. To find a trusted agent near you, go to Ramsey. solutions.com slash agent.