As Connecticut’s population ages, there are few options for families to downsize their homes and remain in their communities.
Aging in place and the opportunity for downsizing were just some of the discussions held during the two day Connecticut Affordable Housing Conference, hosted by the housing nonprofit and policy group Partnership for Strong Communities.
As Connecticut’s population ages, there are few options for families to downsize their homes and remain in their communities.
Allowing older couples and individuals to downsize frees up larger houses for young couples to become homeowners, according to Jocelyn Ayer, director of the Litchfield County Center for Housing Opportunity.
“Many of the populations in many of our towns are aging, and they need options as well, and they aren't getting created,” Ayer said. “Just trying to create options for those folks as well, and you know, smaller ownership options.”
Dozens of speakers at the conference also discussed housing topics ranging from “as of right” zoning policy to renters’ rights.
One panel focused on ways to address the lack of affordable homes for purchase.
Connecticut needs 100,000 more affordable housing units, according to several studies, including one conducted by Connecticut’s Office of Policy and Management.
But some analysts, like Andrew Bolger, a senior research and data analyst at the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, say the study results are often misconstrued.
There are various reasons why families struggle to become homeowners and that it doesn’t only come down to new units, according to Bolger.
“It's not a housing production target, but it's effectively the number of units that need to be made available for no one to be cost burdened,” Bolger said. “A more effective way to look at it is, look at where those gaps are.”
The lack of affordable options for sale, insufficient savings and competition from investors and cash buyers are all reasons why some residents experience difficulty becoming a homeowner.
Part of the issue is an increase in the number of households in Connecticut, as college graduates move out and one or two person households become more common.
“Connecticut is a unique case in terms of the number of the changes in active listings over the last six years,” Bolger said. “We do fit into a kind of regional trend where you have areas in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic into kind of the Midwest seeing significant inventory declines between October 2019 and last month.”
