The Importance of Quality Housing on Children’s Health and Well-being

by Jennifer Landau

A few years ago, The Atlantic published a piece that explored the effect of rundown housing on the children who live there. The article was profound and provided new rationale for the importance of quality housing. Each day at CHFA, we influence positive change in people’s lives by improving the quality and quantity of low income housing. It’s the reason what we do is so important and it’s also why our Multifamily Design, Construction and Sustainability Standards and Guidelines are essential in promoting quality apartment homes for the residents of Connecticut.

In The Atlantic article, a clear connection is made between living in safe, decent housing and the effect it has on children’s lives. Surprisingly, it is the quality of the housing that is the strongest predictor of a child’s well-being and development during their first formative years.

This link is determined from data collected from a six-year study by Professor Rebekah Levine Coley of the Lynch School of Education at Boston College and assisted by colleagues from Tufts University. The data was collected from over 2,400 low-income children in Boston, Chicago and San Antonio as part of the study. The housing environments and the behavioral, emotional and cognitive development of these children was researched and tracked over time.

Among the study’s key findings include:

“The housing environments were assessed for adequate light and fresh air, working appliances, adequate heat and hot water, rodent and bug infestations, holes in walls, and peeling paint. The study also sought to parse out other causation effects such as poor parenting and stress management of the parents, unemployment and mental health issues.

As a result, it was found that children living in derelict housing had lower average reading and math skills and more behavioral and emotional problems. In addition, low-income children living in high-crime neighborhoods, also tend to spend more time in their homes than middle-class suburban children who have safe playgrounds, schools and other after-school activities.”

The home is viewed and celebrated as a place of refuge, safety and sanctuary to its inhabitants, especially children. However, when the home itself is the cause of stress and anxiety due to a lack of clean water or adequate heat, children suffer in ways that we are only beginning to understand.

CHFA’s Standards and Guidelines were developed to ensure that all multifamily housing financed by CHFA or the Connecticut Department of Housing is constructed using quality, durable and efficient materials and equipment, free from environmental hazards such as radon, mold, asbestos and lead-based paint. The importance of these standards should not be underestimated as they support and encourage quality housing that all people — especially the most vulnerable such as children — deserve.

Through these standards, the dedicated staff of CHFA work to ensure that “home” is indeed a sanctuary that will endure for years and will positively affect generations to come.

Jennifer Landau is Assistant Director of Multifamily Technical Services for the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority.