North Carolina 2025 Session Status: In Committee Bipartisan · 6 D · 1 R cosponsors

SB 497 — Expand Middle Housing.

Last action — Passed 1st Reading

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced March 25, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Prognosis

Advancing 42% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 7 sponsors

    1 primary, 6 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (6 D · 1 R) — cross-party backing.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

In plain language

The bill requires local governments to allow middle housing in residential zones.

Senate Bill 497 mandates that all types of middle housing must be permitted in residential zones. Local governments can still regulate these developments but cannot discourage them through unreasonable costs or regulations.

What this means for you
  • Small Business: This bill may create more opportunities for small businesses involved in construction and development in residential areas.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

9 added · 10 removed

Plain-language change summary

In the latest version of Senate Bill 497, a line was added clarifying that certain approvals can occur without needing a public hearing. This change simplifies the approval process for specific uses, making it easier for projects to move forward without public input. This could speed up development efforts but may also raise concerns about transparency and community involvement.

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FILED SENATE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA Mar 25, 2025 S.B.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA SESSION 2025 S 1 SENATE BILL 497 Short Title:
497 SESSION 2025 PRINCIPAL CLERK S D SENATE BILL DRS15221-MQ-71 Short Title:
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT TO REQUIRE THE SITING OF MIDDLE HOUSING STRUCTURES IN ALL RESIDENTIAL ZONES.
Rules and Operations of the Senate March 26, 2025 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT TO REQUIRE THE SITING OF MIDDLE HOUSING STRUCTURES IN ALL RESIDENTIAL ZONES.
– The ability to be approved without requiring a public hearing, variance, conditional use permit, special permit, or other discretionary zoning action other than a determination that a site plan conforms with applicable zoning regulations.
– The abilityto be approved without requiring a public hearing, variance, conditional use permit, special permit, or other discretionary zoning action other than a determination that a site plan conforms with applicable zoning regulations.
(c) A local government may regulate middle housing pursuant to the provisions of this Chapter, provided that the regulations do not act to discourage development of middle housing *DRS15221-MQ-71* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 types through unreasonable costs or delay, including zoning, development, siting, or design review standards that restrict middle housing types to less than three stories, or a floor area ratio of less than one.
(c) A local government may regulate middle housing pursuant to the provisions of this Chapter, provided that the regulations do not act to discourage development of middle housing *S497-v-1* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 types through unreasonable costs or delay, including zoning, development, siting, or design review standards that restrict middle housing types to less than three stories, or a floor area ratio of less than one.
Page 2 DRS15221-MQ-71
Page 2 Senate Bill 497-First Edition
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How this bill changes current law

1 change Share ↗

Compared against the N.C. General Statutes as published AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

This bill introduces regulations requiring local governments to allow various types of middle housing in residential zones and restricts certain regulations that could hinder such developments.

  • Article 7 of Chapter 160D

    § 160D-707. Middle housing. (a) As used in this section, the following definitions apply: ... (g) Any provision in an instrument recorded on or after the effective date of this section affecting real property is void and unenforceable if it purports to allow the development of a single-family dwelling on the subject property but would prohibit the development of middle housing or an accessory dwelling unit.

    Adds a new section defining middle housing and establishing requirements for local governments.

Action History

  1. Passed 1st Reading

  2. Ref To Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate

  3. Filed

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 6 co-sponsors · 172 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (6)

Not signed on (172)

172 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 172 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

housing
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors SB 497?
SB 497 is sponsored by Caleb Theodros (Democratic), Sophia Chitlik (Democratic), Woodson Bradley (Democratic), Gale Adcock (Democratic), Julie Mayfield (Democratic), Timothy D. Moffitt (Republican), and Kandie D. Smith (Democratic).
What is the current status of SB 497?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced March 25, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track SB 497?
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Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

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