Connecticut Housing Accessibility & Affordability County Fact Sheets
After growing through most of the past decade, Connecticut’s population is projected to drop over the next two decades. This decline reflects demographic trends, including migration out of the state, an aging population, and a decrease in the white population.
As populations change, demand for specific types of housing will change as well. The Connecticut Department of Housing, in conjunction with the Department of Social Services, commissioned Fairfield County’s Center for Housing Opportunity, Urban Institute, and other partners to study affordable and accessible housing needs in the state.
Starting in May 2020, the research team gathered and analyzed data from state, federal, and public sources to describe and project trends in Connecticut’s affordable and accessible housing supply and needs across different population groups.
To create housing that meets affordability needs, the research team found that Connecticut must address
decreased rates of new construction;
the potential loss of affordability for thousands of units as Section 8 project-based rental assistance, Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, and other forms of assistance expire; and
an 86,000-unit gap in affordable housing needed for households with very low incomes.
Although the total number of households with very low incomes is projected to decline through 2040, the decrease will not be enough to close the affordability gap. The study team addressed these and other challenges in a report, a state summary, and eight county summaries.
Research: Housing Connecticut’s Future: Meeting the State’s Affordable and Accessible Housing Needs, February 2021. Christie Stewart, Peter A. Tatian, Lydia Lo, Kelly Davila, Fay Walker.
Fact Sheets: All fact sheets are authored by Fay Walker, Lydia Lo, and Peter Tatian and were published in April 2021.
Summary Text: Urban Institute
