SUSSEX, Wis. — It's prime home-building time in our region as warmer weather rolls in, but can developers keep up with demand? The I-Team looks into a new study that shows the Badger State is in a housing shortage and it could get worse in the next few years if things don't pick up.
According to the Wisconsin Counties Association and Forward Analytics, 140,000 homes need to be built by 2030 to keep up with demand for folks under 65. It's a staggering number to avoid a state-wide housing shortage. Researchers aren't optimistic, but developers said they think it's doable.
"This is something that's been coming for a long time," Dale Knapp said.
Knapp's the research director for the Wisconsin Counties Association and Forward Analytics. Over the last several years, he and his team tracked housing numbers across the state, finding supply simply isn't meeting demand.
"The shortage is being driven by the large baby boom that is retiring and essentially leaving the workforce, but like other generations, staying in their homes and they'll continue to," Knapp explained.
Knapp said this is a problem because the baby-boom generation is 20 percent larger than previous generations, leaving fewer homes for people in the workforce.
He said interest rates, lack of affordable housing, a lack of empty lots, and skilled workers all contribute to the shortage too. Despite these challenges, Knapp said there is a solution.
"Smaller lots, smaller homes, again for younger people. We have to have that local understanding that we need to do this for the good of everybody," Knapp added.
That's exactly what Harbor Homes is doing in 16 communities across six different counties in Southeast Wisconsin. This includes the new Vista Run neighborhood in Sussex. The goal of this development is to have options and providing affordability.
"We have twin condo units, we also have some twin and quad townhome units and also have single family on estate lots, residential lots, and then what we call villa lots as well," Corey Gerth explained.
Gerth's the director of sales for Harbor Homes. He said they want to be able to meet the high demand, but hurdles still remain.
"It's really no big secret out there, skilled labor has certainly been a challenge. We are cautiously optimistic about the market and where things have started since the beginning of this year," Gerth said.
There's optimism on the building side, that Gerth said, is also trickling down to home buyers.
"It's a great time to buy. I don't see home prices, especially with lower inventories, that prices, there's not going to be a big cliff to drop off. Totally different than it was in '07 '08," Gerth added.
A race against the clock that Knapp and researchers fear could have impacts beyond the housing industry.
To read Knapp's full study, visit Forward-Analytics.net.
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