The 2016 Housing Instability & Homelessness Report Series is a collection of local reports designed to better equip our community to make data-informed decisions around housing instability and homelessness. Utilizing local data and research, these reports are designed to provide informative and actionable research to providers, funders, public officials and the media as well as the general population. In 2014, the Housing Advisory Board of Charlotte-Mecklenburg outlined four key reporting areas that, together, comprised an annual series of reports for community stakeholders. This report presents several strategies that can be used to finance and facilitate the development of quality affordable housing, with a focus on long-term affordability. A community’s adequate supply of affordable housing plays an important role in creating inclusive communities, attracting and retaining a workforce, improving the well-being of households and creating economic opportunity. The focus and context of this report was informed by interviews conducted with local and state policy makers, for-profit developers, non-profit developers, advocates, and thought leaders. Through these interviews, two main themes emerged that highlight the challenges in developing affordable housing in Charlotte Mecklenburg challenges to financial feasibility including the cost of neighborhood resistance, and challenges to developing long-term affordability of housing. These challenges are not unique to Charlotte; they are faced by communities nationwide. This report will focus on strategies for financing affordable housing development and ensuring long-term affordability of affordable housing units. Strategies were identified by examining national reports and literature to highlight best practices and innovative strategies for developing affordable housing. Each strategy is presented with a high-level overview followed by a case study describing what the strategy looks like in practice. This report does not make a determination on which strategies are best or most feasible for Charlotte-Mecklenburg as any approach will need to be multifaceted and unique to the needs and context of the community.