As the role of housing as a determinant of success in life — affecting health, access to education, and the opportunity for upward mobility — becomes better understood, cities face the daunting task of eliminating the affordable-and-healthy housing shortfall. The challenge for city leaders is to ensure that city residents can afford a safe and healthy place to live, one that enables them to work, support and protect their families, and ultimately thrive and reach their full potential.

This resource explores the factors that contribute to affordable housing and health, including examples of successful strategies used by cities to generate and preserve healthy and affordable housing.

This backgrounder will be used by participants in our April 2019 Mayors’ Institute on Affordable Housing & Health as a starting point for their work.