A new Pioneer Institute report finds that a mismatch between who lives in Massachusetts and the housing being built is squeezing two generations at once: young families who cannot get into a house, and older adults who cannot downsize.

The report, “Right-Sizing Housing: Why Massachusetts Needs More Small Homes and How to Build Them,” recommends allowing for townhomes and small multifamily buildings in existing neighborhoods without discretionary reviews, reducing minimum lot size requirements and parking mandates, expanding rights to build accessory dwelling units, and strengthening the state’s Starter Homes Zoning District program. Statewide, townhomes and condos generally sell for significantly less than new single-family homes, but many towns restrict or ban them.

Massachusetts household sizes have been shrinking in recent decades. As of 2024, 63 percent of Massachusetts households have one or two people, but just 44 percent of occupied homes have two or fewer bedrooms. Nationally, the share of new single-family homes with two or fewer bedrooms fell from 24 percent in 1984 to 5 percent in 2024.

The shortage squeezes both ends of the age spectrum. Many seniors who want to downsize can’t find smaller homes to move into. From 2021 to 2024 alone, Massachusetts added 78,000 senior-led households, and surveys show nearly half of older adults expect to relocate at some point.

More information is available in the full report here.