![](https://mc-379cbd4e-be3f-43d7-8383-5433-cdn-endpoint.azureedge.net/housing/-/media/housing/home/mom-and-daughter-hero.jpg?rev=aa56dbd805244d53ad7a1c66dfd5869c)
Hennepin County Housing
Building a foundation for all
Support across the housing spectrum
A safe and affordable place to live is the foundation on which people build successful lives. At Hennepin County, we work to develop a range of affordable housing options across income levels. We call it the affordable housing spectrum. We also work to make homelessness rare, brief, and nonrecurring.
This spectrum is the heart of our housing strategy at Hennepin County—helping everyone across the continuum gain access to greater housing stability.
Making a difference
Our programs and strategies have very real impacts on the lives of thousands of people living in our county. Read some of their stories.
![sketch of the new opportunity crossing building](https://mc-379cbd4e-be3f-43d7-8383-5433-cdn-endpoint.azureedge.net/housing/-/media/housing/stories/opportunity-crossing-new-building-sketch.jpg?h=520&iar=0&w=800&rev=e8dadf73dc754d73b1f6c1e9657d6cc3&hash=F1851A54D4D9DACB2313CD5959A3A671)
Developers break ground on new shelter, affordable housing developments
![man waving in his new apartment](https://mc-379cbd4e-be3f-43d7-8383-5433-cdn-endpoint.azureedge.net/housing/-/media/housing/stories/man-waving-in-apartment.jpg?h=520&iar=0&w=800&rev=84f2ec08eefb4938bdecb2ebc8efc094&hash=E526047DDDCC9EFE72F3B0077C3A0604)
Homeless to Housing program exceeds 1,000 people housed
The program embraces a person-centered approach to finding housing.
![women working at her desk](https://mc-379cbd4e-be3f-43d7-8383-5433-cdn-endpoint.azureedge.net/housing/-/media/housing/stories/women-at-her-desk.jpg?h=520&iar=0&w=800&rev=e56834a1c36e49f0bb94497f54d75408&hash=E4ED381800FB7518D2138B864F2D9044)
Shelter hotline proves an agile resource for residents
The Hennepin Shelter Hotline has become a valuable thread in the safety net to keep area residents off the streets and out of the shelter system.
Families are facing a crisis
53,090 households in Hennepin County make below 30% of the area median income, but there are only 18,705 housing units affordable to them.![There are an estimated 73,660 households in Hennepin County with incomes below 30% of the area median income, but only 14,192 housing units affordable to them.](https://mc-379cbd4e-be3f-43d7-8383-5433-cdn-endpoint.azureedge.net/housing/-/media/housing/home/families-facing-a-crisis-graph.png?h=253&w=588&rev=bfbb664d0a594fa38824e6cc45280312&hash=FA3FFA787405C7D6B1FF4AC13E19FBE8)
Disparities in housing affordability
We also see significant racial disparities in households that spend more than a third of their income on housing.
![51% cost burdened black households and 25% cost burdened white households](https://mc-379cbd4e-be3f-43d7-8383-5433-cdn-endpoint.azureedge.net/housing/-/media/housing/home/disparities-in-housing.png?rev=65283a7ed2d54885a8e0926adb275853&hash=7B737DCA13BAEB55EE056C3EF6E897E1)