Wisconsin's declining population reduces housing needs by almost 50%

A new report from the Wisconsin Counties Association updates the state's expected housing needs, dramatically reducing the number of new units needed by the end of the decade. As Joe Schulz reports for Wisconsin Public Radio, a 2023 estimate by Forward Analytics, the WCA's research arm, projected that the state would need 140,000 new homes to meet demand. 

The new report revises that number down to 84,000 due to a projected decline in residents aged 25 to 64, which is expected to decrease by roughly 200,000 by 2030. "That age group already declined by more than 25,000 from 2020 through 2024, and the trend is expected to accelerate through the end of the decade as more baby boomers age out of the workforce, the report said."

Analyst Jacob Anderson warns that the change isn't necessarily a good thing and signals "greater demographic pressures and challenges" as the state's population ages, and that building more housing than is strictly necessary is one way to reverse the decline in working-age residents. "The report also points to signs of 'pent-up demand' among younger adults in Wisconsin, noting around 13 percent of the state’s 25- to 34-year-olds live with their parents or in-laws."