How can a bill pass both the House and Senate with identical language, yet still sink before ever reaching the Governor’s desk? That’s exactly what happened to House Bill 685 – legislation that would have allowed manufactured housing by right in all residentially zoned areas. NHAR supported the bill and testified in its favor.
Over the course of several months, both chambers debated HB 685 and ultimately passed it with strong bipartisan support. The Senate made a small amendment that didn’t significantly change the substance of the bill. Even so, that minor change triggered the need for a committee of conference – a standard process used to reconcile differences between House and Senate versions of a bill.
When the committee met, the Senate agreed to drop its amendment and accept the House’s original version. The House conferees agreed as well. Problem solved? Not quite.
Under legislative rules, members of the committee of conference must sign a formal report before the bill can advance. But despite having just agreed to the bill’s language – which had already passed the House with wide support – the House members refused to sign the document. With the deadline expired, the bill died.
The political motivations behind this maneuver are a bit murky and complex. But the outcome is straightforward, and unfortunate. A sensible, bipartisan effort to expand affordable housing options in New Hampshire was derailed at the finish line, leaving many workers and families without a solution they desperately need.
The end of a lease might soon be grounds for eviction – with a few caveats
After nearly four years of debate, the legislature is poised to pass legislation which would make the end of a lease grounds for an eviction. The compromise language will now be a part of House Bill 60.
Earlier this year, the Senate passed a very different version of HB 60 than what the House had approved. When a committee of conference met to reconcile the two, lawmakers decided to scrap both versions and start fresh with new language.
The no-fault termination of tenancy applies to leases which are 12 months or longer, or which have been renewed for 12 months or longer. In such cases, the expiration of that lease will be “good cause” to evict. Currently, under RSA 540:2, the end of a lease term is not considered sufficient grounds, or “good cause,” for an eviction. The Senate had wanted some sort of trigger (such a vacancy rate above a certain percentage) but agreed to throw that idea overboard.
Landlords utilizing the no-fault termination of tenancy provision will need to provide tenants with written 60-day notice.
The new language will need to be approved by both the full House and Senate before it can head to the Governor’s desk. If it does become law, it will not go into effect until July 2026.
Homestead exemption increases
House Bill 617 was introduced to increase the existing $120,000 homestead exemption in RSA 480:1. Earlier this year, the House passed its version of the bill, which increased the exemption to $1 million, while the Senate voted to increase the homestead exemptions to $550,000, or $350,000 if owned by a single person.
The homestead exemption is a legal provision that protects a portion of a homeowner’s primary residence from creditors, up to a certain dollar amount.
Members of both the House and Senate met last week in a conference committee and agreed on a compromise which increases the exemption to $550,000, or $400,000 if owned by a single individual.
Both the full House and Senate will need to vote later this week to accept the change before it can head to the Governor’s desk. If signed into law, the new limits will go into effect on January 1, 2026.
Expedited permitting of major entrances for residential use of 20 units or greater
House Bill 2, which is the two-year state budget bill, includes a new mandate on the NH Department of Transportation (DOT) to expedite driveway permitting for residential projects with 20 or more units. The DOT will need to act within 60 business days of approval of the traffic impact study.
An applicant electing to use the expedited permitting process will need to pay a $120 per unit non-refundable permit fee.
In addition to the permit fee, the applicant will need to pay reasonable expenses incurred by the department for third-party professional engineer review and consultation during the expedited permitting process.
The future of House Bill 2 is uncertain. Both the House and Senate will vote on the budget package later this week.
Quotes of the Week
“While previous trends did not demand that economic development leaders focus on factors like housing and childcare, they are now impediments to business growth and competitive disadvantages for NH. Addressing these shortages is a policy priority.”
–From the NH Business and Industry's “BluePrint NH 2030,” which lays out a long-range vision for the state’s economy and creates a path forward for addressing the state’s top challenges to business growth. It is the result of over 400 business leaders from across the state.
“These types of housing are unfortunately often misconstrued as the old-fashioned form of ‘mobile homes’, whereas by today’s standards they are safe, can be quite large, have great curb appeal, and their controlled costs associated with being built in a factory help make them inexpensive.”
–Danica Melone, Peterborough Town Planner (NH Union Leader, June 22, 2025)
For more information, contact New Hampshire Realtors CEO Bob Quinn: bob@nhar.com.