Introduction
Housing serves as an important foundation for a community, not only defining where individuals spend much of their time but also impacting their perspectives on the surrounding area. The Town’s housing regulations, affordability, and quality are all important factors when it comes to making Franklin an appealing place to live.
Affordability and diversity of housing stock in a Town such as Franklin is vital for continuous growth and improvement. Massachusetts encourages municipalities to create a Housing Production Plan (HPP) to guide local policies for creating affordable housing. The HPP serves as a strategic report to help communities meet the 10 percent minimum under Chapter 40B, the state’s affordable housing law.
Existing Conditions and Trends
Franklin is one of the most populated towns in Norfolk County with over thirty thousand residents. Most homes in Franklin were built between 1980 and 1999 when the Baby Boomer generation sought homes in the suburbs to raise their families and migrated from cities such as Boston and Providence. This movement was facilitated in part by the extension of I-495. The housing boom during this period led to the construction of over 5,100 homes, including large-scale subdivisions featuring spacious single-family houses.
During the latter half of the 1990s, Massachusetts experienced a notable surge in housing production as part of the recovery from the housing collapse that occurred between 1989 and 1991.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2017-2021 American Community Survey, Franklin’s population has continued to grow since the influx of population in the 1980s, supporting 33,057 people today.5 This population growth, coupled with the town’s considerable development capacity, has led to a broader range of housing options. Compared with neighboring towns, Franklin stands out for its ability to offer a more varied selection of housing developments.
POPULATION CHARACTERISTICS
Race and Ethnicity
Franklin’s population consists of 28,921 (88 percent) white, non-Hispanic residents, similar to other towns in Norfolk County.6 The second largest ethnic cohort is of Asian descent, with 1,855 residents (5.6 percent) identifying as such.
Based on the 2021 American Community Survey, Franklin has 14,255 residents who are hometown natives, having resided in the town for the majority, if not the entirety, of their lives.8 Roughly two-thirds of the populace were born in Massachusetts; the remaining third is comprised of individuals who relocated from other states or were born outside of the United States.9 Of the foreign-born population, an estimated 45 percent (about 1,300 residents) emigrated from Asia.
Population Age
As in most communities in Massachusetts, Franklin has an aging population. Unique to Franklin is its large population of older children, who constitute the second largest age group after middle-aged residents. There are 5,855 (17 percent) residents 10-19 years old, while the largest population cohort aged 50-65 comprises 8,125 (25 percent) of the total population. Even with a substantial population of children, school enrollment is in decline, though the overall population has stayed relatively consistent in recent years.
HOUSEHOLDS
Census data from 2021 shows there are 9,693 owner-occupied housing units and 2,425 renter-occupied housing units to accommodate Franklin’s population.12 In recent years the population of Franklin has been aging, to the extent that almost 25 percent of the population will be 65 years of age or older by the year 2030, leading to a need to create a more welcoming housing market that includes an increase of affordable housing.
According to the Town’s recently completed Housing Production Plan:
● Franklin has experienced a 48 percent increase in population over the past 25 years.
● By 2030, residents over 65 years of age are expected to make up approximately 23.2
percent of Franklin’s population, compared to 8.2 percent in 2000.
● Franklin is home to 12,511 households, up from 10,995 in 2010 (9 percent increase)
● Franklin’s average household size is 2.7, and its average family size is 3.22.
● Franklin’s median household income has increased 13.2 percent since 2015, and 37.25 percent since the 2010 Census.
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