September 24, 2026 2:50 a.m. 

On Wednesday, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley introduced new legislation to help support the dream of homeownership for Americans by ensuring working families have a credible path to save up for a downpayment sufficient to purchase a modest home by age 30.

A release from Merkley said the Homeownership Promise Act would create Homeownership Promise Accounts, a basic new standard for Americans that would allow any first-time homebuyer who saves $1 for a downpayment on a house to get a $5 match from the federal government. As young Americans struggle to purchase their first home—with the median age of first-time homebuyers rising to 40 years old in 2025, Merkley said the legislation is essential to restoring the dream of homeownership.

Senator Merkley said, “Working families should be able to afford a decent home in a decent community.” Senator Merkley said, “For millions of young Americans, homeownership remains further out of reach than ever before, keeping them from establishing the foundation that has enabled middle-class families to build equity for generations.”

The Homeownership Promise Act would:

• Direct the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to create a matching downpayment grant, called a Homeownership Promise Account, that supports first-time homebuyers purchasing a median-priced principal residence.
• Establish an overall maximum contribution limit of $60,000. That would be a $10,000 maximum combined personal, employer, and nonprofit contributions in addition to $50,000 maximum federal matching funds.

Oregon’s U.S. Senator Ron Wyden cosponsored the legislation.

Full text of the Homeownership Promise Act can be found at: www.merkley.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Homeownership-Promise-Act.pdf

A one-page summary of the act can be found at: www.merkley.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Homeownership-Promise-Act-One-Pager-119th-Congress.pdf