Housing

Virginia Fair Housing Law; unlawful conduct. Directs the Fair Housing Board to promulgate regulations defining "quid pro quo harassment," "hostile environment harassment," and other terms related to unlawful conduct under the Virginia Fair Housing Law. The bill directs the Fair Housing Board to adopt emergency regulations to implement the provisions of the bill.

Department of Housing and Community Development; administration of Urban Public-Private Partnership Redevelopment grant program; report. Directs the Department of Housing and Community Development to review and develop criteria and guidelines for the administration of the Urban Public-Private Partnership Redevelopment grant program in consultation with the Virginia Association of Counties, the Virginia First Cities Coalition, the Virginia Municipal League, and the Virginia Economic Developers Association. The bill requires such criteria to include (i) award prioritization for (a) localities experiencing an above average and high level of fiscal stress as designated by the Commission on Local Government in its most recent Report on Comparative Revenue Capacity, Revenue Effort, and Fiscal Stress of Virginia's Cities and Counties and (b) localities experiencing a significant decrease in commercial real estate assessments and (ii) the amount and type of local matches with consideration of both monetary and non-monetary contribution requirements. The bill requires the Director of the Department to report the Department's findings to the Chairs of the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations, the Senate Committee on General Laws and Technology, the House Committee on Appropriations, and the House Committee on General Laws no later than November 1, 2026.

Unlawful detainer; bifurcation of case; contested rent and damages. Provides that, at an initial hearing on an unlawful detainer, if the defendant contests the amount of rent and damages alleged to be due and owing to the plaintiff, the court shall not bifurcate the unlawful detainer case. Under current law, at the initial hearing, upon request of the plaintiff, the court is required to bifurcate the unlawful detainer case and set a continuance date no later than 120 days from the date of the initial hearing to determine final rent and damages.

Zoning; development agreements in certain localities. Allows any locality within Planning District 23 with a population between 245,000 and 350,000 that has adopted a transfer of development rights ordinance to include provisions in its zoning ordinance that allow the governing body to enter into binding development agreements with owners of real property in the locality, so long as the property to be developed contains at least 1,000 acres or is located within (i) a receiving area of a transfer of development rights program and (ii) a tax increment financing district. Current law allows only New Kent County to include such provisions allowing for development agreements in its zoning ordinance.

Zoning; nonconforming uses; manufactured homes. Provides that a land owner or home owner may place a manufactured home that meets the current HUD manufactured housing code upon any open lot in a valid nonconforming mobile or manufactured home park regardless of whether a valid nonconforming manufactured home is currently located on such lot. The bill also provides that, for the purposes of determining whether a use has been continuous, an existing mobile or manufactured home shall be considered a valid nonconforming mobile or manufactured home regardless of whether such mobile or manufactured home has been occupied during the preceding two-year period.

Water and sewer connection fees; first-time homebuyers; affordable housing. Provides that any locality may provide for the full or partial reimbursement to a first-time homebuyer of water and sewer connection fees, capital recovery charges, and availability fees paid in connection with any new residential development conveyed to such homebuyer. The bill also permits any locality that has adopted an affordable dwelling unit ordinance pursuant to general law to provide for a waiver of such fees and charges for any development subject to the requirements of such ordinance.

Expedited approval for certain affordable housing developments. Allows a locality, by ordinance, to authorize a zoning administrator to use an administrative process to approve rezoning applications for certain affordable housing developments. The bill requires that the affordable housing development comply with the Virginia Fair Housing Law, connect to a public or community water supply or sewage system, and be located within or adjacent to an area identified by the locality that could support increased density development and provide access to services. The bill also requires the locality, prior to the adoption of such ordinance, to advertise its intention to propose such ordinance within a certain period of time in a newspaper having a general circulation in the locality. The bill allows the Department of Housing and Community Development to give a locality priority for any grants or loans administered by the Department if such locality demonstrates to the Department's satisfaction that its ordinance has met the provisions of the bill. Finally, the bill requires certain localities that adopt such ordinance to include in their annual local housing policy report to the Department a summary of the ordinance.

Local authority; affordable housing performance grant programs. Allows any locality that has created an industrial development authority or economic development authority (the Authority) to establish, by ordinance, an affordable housing performance grant program. The bill outlines that such ordinance authorizes the Authority to award affordable housing performance grants to qualifying applicants. Such an ordinance must include: (i) a definition of affordable housing; (ii) grant application guidelines and processes, including an identification of the local officer that is designated to receive applications; (iii) criteria for determining whether the construction or improvement of property qualifies for the awarding of the grant; (iv) provisions that require an applicant seeking the award of a grant to acquire appropriate permits and complete the construction or improvement to develop affordable housing before such a grant will be awarded; (v) provisions that require an applicant seeking the award of a grant to present evidence demonstrating that he has filed and recorded a restrictive covenant to provide affordable housing on the property for a set term, as determined by the ordinance, provided that such term shall be no more than 30 years, on the subject qualifying property before such a grant will be awarded; and (vi) a timeline for the Authority to award grants to qualifying applicants, which may be either upon the completion of the construction or improvement of the property, or on January 1 of the year following the completion of the construction or improvement of the property. The bill also limits the total amount of any such grant to being no more than the amount equal to the increase in assessed value resulting from the construction or improvement of a property. Finally, the bill permits a locality that adopts such ordinance to impose a fee, not to exceed $250, to offset the costs of processing an application.

Affordable housing; local zoning ordinance authority. Authorizes any locality in the Commonwealth to provide for an affordable housing dwelling unit program by amending the zoning ordinance of such locality. Current law restricts such authorization to counties with an urban county executive form of government or county manager plan of government and certain other localities. In addition to optional increases in density, the bill provides that such program may include certain additional implementation measures including lot size reductions and accessory housing unit allowances. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027, and is identical to SB 74.

Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies; noncompliance with rental agreement; mandatory waiting period. Increases the mandatory waiting period for a landlord to pursue remedies for termination of the rental agreement from five days to 14 days. The waiting period begins after a landlord serves written notice on a tenant notifying the tenant of his nonpayment of rent and of the landlord's intention to terminate the rental agreement if rent is not paid. This bill is identical to HB 15.