How Housing Affects Children's Outcomes

Housing quality, instability, and unaffordability threaten the well-being of millions of children across the nation. Research shows that housing is the first rung on the ladder to economic opportunity and that a person’s access to opportunity is intrinsically linked with that of the community where they live. As home prices increase, the gap between rents and incomes continues to widen, and nearly half of today’s renters are cost burdened. Child welfare professionals, educators, and pediatricians can strengthen their work by understanding the central importance of housing as a determinant of wide-ranging outcomes for the country’s youngest generation.