Affordable homeownership gives families both short- and long-term benefits. Because parents can spend less time working and more time with their children, their children do better in school and are more likely to attend college than those living in unaffordable housing.

Access to stable, affordable homeownership allows families to spend more on necessities.

In fact, one study found that affordably housed families spend nearly 5X as much on health care, 33% more on food, and 2X as much on retirement savings.

Affordable homeownership is also an effective way of ending the cycle of poverty. Research shows that children who move from high-poverty to low-poverty neighborhoods have higher incomes, are less likely to be single parents, and live in better neighborhoods as adults.

After moving into a Habitat home, one study found that families became much less dependent on supplemental social programs. For example, families who used food and nutrition services went from 65% to 43% after moving into their Habitat home — a drop of 34%.

Affordable homeownership has been shown to improve the economy in both direct and indirect ways. In addition to creating jobs, it increases regional spending and local government revenue through additional permits and corporate taxes. For every dollar of direct spending, an additional $1.12 is generated.

Homeownership gives people a larger stake in their surrounding community than renting. As a result, residents who can afford to buy a home are more likely to volunteer in their neighborhood and engage in local political activity.