TOWN OF NEEDHAM
HOUSING PLAN 2022
A Brief Summary
In 2021, the Town of Needham formed the Housing Plan Working Group to update its 2006 Housing Plan. The purpose of the Housing Plan is “to provide a pathway for creating housing opportunities in the Town of Needham.”
From the Housing Plan: After 15 months of work together, the Working Group has concluded that the Town needs to pursue opportunities to provide housing that is affordable to residents of different income levels. We believe the implementation of this Housing Plan to preserve, and hopefully increase, both moderate-income and affordable housing is critical to maintaining the diversity and economic prosperity of Needham. This Plan presents recommendations that Town Boards, Committees, Departments, and other entities are asked to pursue to take advantage of the community’s housing opportunities. … [W]ithout major interventions at all levels of government, Needham and many other communities in the Greater Boston area will continue to lose ground on their ability to be a place where individuals and families across a range of economic and social strata can call home.
To come to their conclusions, the Working Group did convincing comprehensive research into Needham’s demographic and economic characteristics and trends, as well as our housing characteristics and trends. They found that:
- Current housing prices and rents in Needham are “unprecedently high” and there are significant affordability gaps.
- 12.8% of Needham homeowner households and 40.9% of renter households spend more than 30% of their income on housing costs. By definition, this means that they are “cost burdened.”
- Housing supply in Needham is inadequate to meet demand.
- The population of Needham is aging, as most young individuals and families are unable to afford to move to Needham.
- The town should “Enhance the vitality of our commercial areas to encourage walkability, commuting, shopping, services, socializing, and health.”
The Housing Plan presents seventeen major recommendations in three categories: Zoning; Development and Preservation Strategies; and Capacity Building Strategies. These are listed on pages 1-3 of the Housing Plan and explained in detail starting on page 32.
The Needham Housing Coalition supports the great majority of recommendations made in the Housing Plan, including those that “merit further study.”
For a comprehensive summary of the Plan, click here.
The entire 201-page Needham 2022 Housing Plan can be found here.
