PROJECTForecasting State and National Trends in Household Formation and Homeownership
Wisconsin
Forecasting State Homeownership Trends

Trends in household formation and homeownership have important implications for states’ housing markets and broader economies. They also reveal who has benefited from homeownership and who has been shut out of this critical wealth-building tool. To better understand the past and future of household formation and homeownership in Wisconsin, we look at trends by age, race, and ethnicity. Our projections, using data from decennial censuses and the American Community Survey, show what will happen over the next two decades if current policies stay the same. For more details on the methodology, see our report.

Household Formation

We look at changes in the number of households (defined as one or more people who live in a housing unit) for four racial and ethnic groups: Hispanic, non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic Black, and people of other races, which includes Asians, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, other Pacific Islanders, and multiracial people (all of whom are non-Hispanic). We also examine household formation trends for people younger than 65 and people ages 65 and older.

Number of Households and Household Growth

Number of Households in Wisconsin, by Race or Ethnicity
 
  1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040
Total 1,820,464 2,082,859 2,279,670 2,405,506 2,534,439 2,596,617
White 1,700,423 1,888,045 2,003,040 2,049,183 2,090,587 2,061,256
Black 74,087 97,132 120,930 139,298 153,861 165,712
Hispanic 21,582 48,341 85,380 121,476 161,732 205,736
Other 24,372 49,341 70,320 95,549 128,259 163,912
  Household Growth: Wisconsin Household Growth: Nationwide
2010–2020 2020–2030 2030–2040 2010–2020 2020–2030 2030–2040
Total 5.5% 5.4% 2.5% 5.9% 6.4% 5.4%
White 2.3% 2.0% −1.4% 0.1% 0.5% −1.3%
Black 15.2% 10.5% 7.7% 9.9% 10.1% 8.8%
Hispanic 42.3% 33.1% 27.2% 22.1% 19.2% 17.3%
Other 35.9% 34.2% 27.8% 20.9% 20.0% 18.4%

Sources: Decennial censuses, the American Community Survey, and Urban Institute projections.
Notes: Values for 2020, 2030, and 2040 are projected values. The “Other” category includes Asians, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, other Pacific Islanders, and multiracial people.

Number of Households in Wisconsin, by Age


 

Number of Households in Wisconsin, by Age, Race, and Ethnicity
 
  Younger than 65 65 and older
White Black Hispanic Other White Black Hispanic Other
1990 1,290,243 66,619 20,487 22,239 410,180 7,468 1,095 2,133
2000 1,447,077 86,250 45,061 45,200 440,968 10,882 3,280 4,141
2010 1,521,280 106,160 80,030 63,410 481,760 14,770 5,350 6,910
2020 1,423,822 115,892 111,898 84,606 625,361 23,405 9,578 10,943
2030 1,289,878 119,454 143,064 110,015 800,709 34,407 18,668 18,244
2040 1,224,820 126,223 170,121 137,731 836,436 39,489 35,615 26,181
Number of Households in the United States, by Age, Race, and Ethnicity
 
  Younger than 65 65 and older
White Black Hispanic Other White Black Hispanic Other
2000 60,344,232 9,972,344 8,293,773 4,728,999 18,748,904 1,835,658 928,629 627,564
2020 55,784,880 11,872,258 14,733,722 7,456,779 26,591,297 3,379,648 2,550,232 1,616,708
2040 48,524,107 13,051,680 19,825,205 10,817,807 33,236,589 5,553,598 6,026,735 3,088,951

Sources: Decennial censuses, the American Community Survey, and Urban Institute projections.
Notes: Values for 2020 and 2040 are projected values. The “Other” category includes Asians, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, other Pacific Islanders, and multiracial people.

Household Racial and Ethnic Composition, by Age, in Wisconsin, and Nationwide

Sources: Decennial censuses, the American Community Survey, and Urban Institute projections.
Notes: Values for 2020, 2030, and 2040 are projected values. The “Other” category includes Asians, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, other Pacific Islanders, and multiracial people.

Homeownership

We look at changes in homeownership for four racial and ethnic groups: Hispanic, non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic Black, and people of other races, which includes Asians, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, other Pacific Islanders, and multiracial people (all of whom are non-Hispanic). We also examine trends in the number of homeowners and renters younger than 65 and people 65 and older.

Wisconsin Homeownership Rates, by Race or Ethnicity
 
  1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040
Total 66.7% 68.5% 68.1% 68.2% 68.5% 68.1%
White 69.1% 71.7% 72.2% 73.2% 74.1% 74.0%
Black 29.9% 32.7% 30.5% 24.2% 25.7% 26.9%
Hispanic 38.3% 37.8% 40.9% 44.9% 48.9% 52.4%
Other 38.5% 44.7% 47.4% 52.8% 53.9% 54.7%
National Homeownership Rates, by Race or Ethnicity
 
  1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040
Total 65.3% 66.2% 65.1% 64.7% 63.6% 62.2%
White 70.1% 72.4% 72.2% 73.0% 72.5% 71.4%
Black 45.2% 46.3% 44.3% 41.9% 41.1% 40.6%
Hispanic 43.3% 45.7% 47.3% 49.0% 50.2% 51.3%
Other 53.7% 53.0% 56.3% 58.1% 57.9% 57.4%

Sources: Decennial censuses, the American Community Survey, and Urban Institute projections.
Notes: Values for 2020, 2030, and 2040 are projected values. The “Other” category includes Asians, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, other Pacific Islanders, and multiracial people.

Homeowners and Renters, by Age, in Wisconsin and Nationwide

Wisconsin Homeownership Rates, by Age
 
  1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040
Younger than 65 64.6% 66.7% 66.1% 64.5% 64.2% 63.5%
65 and older 73.6% 74.7% 74.9% 77.6% 76.8% 76.1%
National Homeownership Rates, by Age
 
  1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040
Younger than 65 62.3% 63.0% 61.6% 59.5% 57.5% 56.5%
65 and older 75.8% 78.1% 77.5% 78.4% 76.0% 73.0%

Sources: Decennial censuses, the American Community Survey, and Urban Institute projections.
Note: Values for 2020, 2030, and 2040 are projected values.

Millions of Owners and Renters in Wisconsin and Nationwide, by Age

Sources: Decennial censuses, the American Community Survey, and Urban Institute projections.
Note: Values for 2020, 2030, and 2040 are projected values.
Research Areas Housing finance
Policy Centers Housing Finance Policy Center