Think about the housing system as a river . . .

Think of the housing system as a river. When it is flowing freely, stable housing empowers every community—supporting health, education, and businesses along the way. But oftentimes, that flow is blocked. Some barriers are easy to see, like zoning restrictions or gaps in funding. Others are harder to spot, like competing priorities among well-meaning stakeholders. These are the logs, dams, and sediment that disrupt the flow of the river. They are not caused by any one entity, but by many overlapping parts of the system.  

Most housing solutions necessarily focus on helping people downstream with emergency shelters, rental vouchers, and downpayment assistance. These interventions are vital because they help people and families in the moment and change the trajectories of their lives. But they don’t remove the barriers or restore the flow.

The Cornerstone Housing™ Initiative turns our attention upstream, to where the root causes of the housing crisis live. It is about clearing obstacles, reshaping the riverbed, and ensuring the housing system delivers stability and opportunity to every person it touches—not just those who manage to stay afloat.