Affordable Housing During Childhood Improves Long-term Outcomes of Women and their Children

The Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) Program is the largest federal affordable housing program in the U.S. Yet, little is known about its impacts on children and families. This paper shows how LIHTC exposure during childhood affects women’s health outcomes in early-adulthood, as well as the health of their infants. Using geocoded Florida Natality data for 1980-2024 and addresses for LIHTC units we study women born to mothers without any college education between 1980-1999. We use a matching model to compare women born into Census tracts that receive LIHTC during their childhoods to women born into Census tracts without LIHTC during their childhoods. These women and their infants are then observed in adulthood when they first give birth in Florida. We find that a standard deviation increase in childhood LIHTC exposure improves the maternal health index and the infant health index by a small but statistically significant 0.007 standard deviations, and improves an index of maternal SES by 0.005 standard deviations. Given that the average treated tract in our sample has only 0.023 LIHTC units per resident, there is considerable room for increasing exposure. LIHTC exposure during childhood improves outcomes the most for Black women, consistent with Black women being more likely to live in LIHTC units, and also more likely to live in Census tracts that receive LIHTC.