UMass Donahue Institute

From the report's Executive Summary...

Way Finders engaged the UMass Donahue Institute (UMDI) to update its 2021 and 2022 Greater Springfield regional housing studies. At the time those reports were released, the region was still reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic which left many residents worried about their economic and housing security. The federal and state government responded to the crisis by offering unprecedented assistance to residents at risk of losing their housing and employment. While the Massachusetts economy has
largely recovered from the 2020 recession brought on by the pandemic, the housing crisis in the commonwealth continues.

In the winter of 2025, Governor Maura Healey released the first Statewide Housing Plan, setting a goal of creating 222,000 housing units by 2035 to ensure that there is adequate housing for all Massachusetts households. Many of these units are needed here in western Massachusetts. In this report UMDI presents a comprehensive picture of housing conditions in the four counties that make up western Massachusetts.