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IV. Research Findings !e Expert View Below, we present a distillation of the core ideas that emerged from the analysis of expert interviews. #is distilled expert view addresses the meaning of healthy housing, the problems with housing, the effects of housing on health, and solutions, or measures to improve housing. What Is Healthy Housing? • "Healthy housing" assumes a broad de#nition of "health." Experts de"ned "health" broadly, including physical health, mental health, community health, safety, stability, affordability, and well-being more generally. While this broad understanding of health was widely shared, experts noted that it represents a shi% in the way that the housing "eld thinks and talks about health. • Healthy housing is multidimensional. Drawing on this broad de"nition of health, experts explained that healthy housing is housing that supports each of the above aspects of health. It refers to housing that is safe, stable, affordable, and free of toxins (i.e., housing that has clean air and clean water, and is free from mold, lead, radon, pests, smoke, carbon monoxide, etc.). • Healthy housing includes community context. Experts stressed that homes can only be considered truly healthy if they are located in healthy neighborhoods and communities. In order to be healthy, housing must be situated within neighborhoods that support physical health by giving people access to healthy food and opportunities to exercise, and that support well-being more broadly by giving people access to quality jobs, services, transportation, and opportunities for social and community engagement. What Are the Problems with Housing? • !ere is a lack of affordable housing. Experts asserted that the country's current supply of affordable housing is inadequate. #ey explained that new affordable housing hasn't been built in decades. As a result, most places have long waiting lists for subsidized housing. #is causes many people to crowd into single living spaces, which negatively affects health and well-being. • !e housing market undervalues health. Experts identi"ed the housing market as a source of health problems, noting that the market does not value health-related improvements to housing in the same way that it is beginning to value energy-efficiency and other "green" improvements. As a result, there is a general reluctance to invest in housing improvements designed to support health outcomes. "A House, a Tent, a Box": Mapping the Gaps Between Expert and Public Understanding of Healthy Housing 12

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