Tucson, AZ

Housing, Climate and environment | 2025

Assessed housing conditions and climate vulnerability to prioritize housing repair and heat mitigation efforts. 

At an average increase of 4.5°F since 1970, Tucson is one of the fastest-warming cities in the United States, and heat-related deaths of residents are increasing. In 2023, Pima County suffered over 50 percent more heat-caused deaths (43) than the previous record in 2022 (28) and more than double any year before 2022. Low-income and marginalized communities in the area are particularly vulnerable to heat events because of poor housing conditions and limited access to the resources required to improve the energy efficiency of their homes. In 2024, the City of Tucson responded by developing the Heat Action Roadmap. As a community-based nonprofit that focuses on safety, environmental, and health issues, the Sonora Environmental Research Institute Inc. (SERI) aimed to further inform Tucson’s housing stock resilience efforts. SERI conducted a detailed analysis of housing conditions in low-income communities in southern metropolitan Tucson to identify the extent of housing deficiencies and prioritize mitigation and sustainability resources.

To collect information on housing conditions, SERI coordinated home assessments based on its healthy homes rating system, which calculates potential risk to residents’ health and safety based on 29 hazards, including extreme heat, mold, and falls. Twenty SERI volunteers, known as community champions, received training on the survey process and helped SERI staff complete the assessments. Together, community champions and staff exceeded their initial goal of 500 home assessments by 27, which they combined with existing data for a total of nearly 900 assessments. Staff will share their analysis of these initial assessments in a report with all residents who participated, as well as with city officials and local housing agencies. SERI also plans to complete more assessments in 2026 and investigate which demographic groups are most affected.  

SERI is partnering with the Cities of Tucson and South Tucson to ensure the data are used to effectively target limited local resources. SERI staff have already begun using the data to focus their home repair, childhood lead poisoning prevention, water conservation, and solar empowerment programs on the most vulnerable neighborhoods. Advocates and policymakers can use project data as a baseline for Tucson-area housing conditions when evaluating housing and neighborhood programs. Doing so will contribute to SERI’s implementation of a data-informed road map to address the disparities in housing conditions and climate vulnerability in the face of rising temperatures.