Andrew Mikula
Among the many common concerns about large new housing developments is that they will overburden local government budgets with an unmanageable influx of school-aged children. Such fears often rest on outdated assumptions about the composition of a typical household. Far from the proverbial “two-and-a-half kids and a dog,” in 2024 most Massachusetts households consisted of either a married couple with no underage children or a single adult living alone. And large multifamily developments in Massachusetts are particularly unlikely to contain a significant concentration of public schoolchildren, often roughly one for every 10 units.
Instead of playing defense over young families, localities should more proactively accommodate the housing needs of empty nesters and single adults, most of whom are aged 60 and older. In recent decades, seniors have grown more likely to live independently, as opposed to with relatives or in a nursing home. From 2021 to 2024, Massachusetts added 78,000 households led by people older than 65.
Simultaneously, there is a mismatch between the housing needs of seniors and the characteristics of the housing options available in many communities, with a particular shortage of small, single-level units. In 2024, there were more Massachusetts senior citizens (age 65-plus) living alone in 3-plus bedroom houses than there were family households led by young adults (under age 35) living in 3-plus bedroom houses.
National surveys suggest that the vast majority of seniors, including those who have “extra bedrooms,” want to live in their current home for as long as possible. But if even 10 percent of Massachusetts’ over-housed seniors want or need to downsize, providing such downsized options could help tens of thousands of them more easily navigate and maintain their homes. It could also unlock tens of thousands of newly vacated housing options for young families and other first-time buyers.
In 2025, nearly one in seven U.S. homebuyers over the age of 60 said the primary reason for buying their home was that they wanted a smaller one. According to a 2024 AARP survey, 44 percent of older U.S. adults “expect to relocate at some point,” often to save on mortgage payments, maintenance and property taxes. In recent years, this older demographic has all but driven the market: in 2025, the median age of all U.S. homebuyers was 59, up from 39 in 2010.
Townhomes Should be Allowed by Right
At the same time, high housing-related costs also prevent many seniors from downsizing, including the steep costs of purchasing and moving into new homes.
Thus, relatively low-cost typologies are needed to provide appealing housing options to downsizing seniors. In pricey areas, small homes will likely take the form of condominiums and townhomes, which help drive down costs by spreading the land value across many units. In 2022, the average value of a single-family residential land parcel in Massachusetts exceeded $1 million per acre.
However, many localities don’t allow townhomes or condos to be built without long, discretionary reviews, and some ban them entirely. Pioneer Institute’s forthcoming AI-enabled database of local land use regulations suggests that, of the 187 communities in Greater Boston, only 72 allow townhomes by right in at least one district.
Instead, localities should allow townhomes and small condo buildings by right in most residential areas, especially near transit and commercial amenities. Municipalities should also loosen density and dimensional rules like setbacks and floor area ratios. Meanwhile, state-level building code reform would make small multifamily buildings financially viable in more places. In addition to reducing lot size minimums, these reforms would help facilitate development on small lots, enabling smaller, lower-cost new homes.
In line with recommendations from recent reports from Pioneer Institute and Boston Indicators, lawmakers should continue finding ways of making it simpler and easier to build accessory dwelling units. ADUs are not only a relatively low-cost and low-maintenance housing option for seniors, but can also be rented to supplement the retirement income of seniors who want to age in place.
Lastly, Chapter 40Y of state law provides incentive payments to municipalities to adopt “starter-home zoning districts” that explicitly cap the size of the new homes. Instead of a hard cap for each home, that size (1,850 square feet) should be an average across the development, granting more flexibility in a way that mirrors a similar bylaw in Lexington.
All things considered, many places in Massachusetts are failing to meet the housing needs of downsizing seniors and anyone else who wants a small, relatively low-cost new home. This demographic’s housing needs are increasingly important to address as they play an ever-larger role in the market.
Andrew Mikula is a senior housing fellow at the Pioneer Institute in Boston.
