Research and News Roundup:
February 2025
Mary Ann Priester
Senior Management Analyst
Mecklenburg County Community Support Services
The Research and News Roundup is a monthly blog series that features a curated list of recent news and research related to housing instability, homelessness, and affordable housing. Together, these topics provide insights about the full housing continuum and provide community stakeholders with information about emergent research, promising practices, and innovative solutions related to housing and homelessness.
This month’s Research and News Roundup highlights the recently released NAEH Housing Focused Street Outreach Framework, how four cities are approaching the affordable housing shortage, and an innovative program that seeks to decrease housing instability among essential workers.
HOUSING INSTABILITY
Innovative Home Ownership Program That Addresses Housing Instability
Two former Wall Street investors launched Build to Rent to Own (B2R2O), a program focused on helping essential workers transition from renting to homeownership within three years. The initiative targets teacher, firefighter, nurse, and other essential personnel households that make 60%-120% of area median income. Program participants pay 30% of their income on rent for three years while building equity to use as a down payment when they transition to home ownership. The program secures underdeveloped home sites where homes can be constructed and supports program participants in improving their credit and securing home loans.
HOMELESSNESS
NAEH Housing-Focused Street Outreach Framework
This week, the National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) released the Housing-Focused Street Outreach Framework. The Framework consists of five key elements necessary to ensure people experiencing unsheltered homelessness are efficiently and effectively connected to resources and housing solutions. These elements include: Data and Impact Analysis, Strategic Collaborations and Partnerships, Person-Centered Engagement, Promotion of Community Well-being, and a Housing-First, Housing-Focused approach. The Framework document provides detailed information on each key element and how communities can align and streamline their work to best meet the needs of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING
How 4 Cities Are Advancing Affordable Housing
Increasing housing density is a promising practice for increasing the number of affordable housing units but efforts to increase housing density are often met with strong community opposition. This article describes how Cambridge, Massachusetts, Clearfield, Utah, San Antonio, Texas, and Providence, Rhode Island have made progress toward increasing local housing density. It showcases four different approaches to addressing and overcoming community opposition to move forward local affordable housing initiatives.
SO WHY DOES THIS MATTER?
The insights highlighted in this blog offer innovative strategies that can be adapted to address housing instability and homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. How other cities are using regulatory reforms, public engagement, and streamlined processes can be used to inform local efforts in these areas and address local opposition to affordable housing development. Similarly, adopting the Housing-Focused Street Outreach (HFSO) framework could strengthen Mecklenburg County’s robust efforts to address unsheltered homelessness through strategic collaborations, data-driven decision-making, and person-centered approaches. Finally, innovative models like the Build to Rent to Own (B2R2O) initiative provide a blueprint for to combat housing instability among essential workers with affordable rents, equity-building opportunities, and pathways to homeownership. These promising practices adapted for local needs and context, can support efforts across the housing continuum to address housing instability and homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
