Financial Feasibility Analysis
PREVIOUS FINDINGS
ASSOCIATES INC
KEY FINDINGS FROM THE DEMOGRAPHIC AND HOUSING MARKET CONDITIONS
Nashua is a growing city.
Nashua’s population has risen rapidly since 1970,
adding nearly 30,000 new residents. Growth is
projected to continue through the year 2030 with the
city adding another 8,000 residents between 2018 and
2030. Nashua’s fastest growing age cohort are those
residents 55 years and older, while middle-aged
residents 35 to 54 are shrinking.
Nashua’s residents are more educated and
have higher incomes than in decades past.
Nashua saw its number of households earning over
$200,000 a year increase by over 60% from 2013 to
2018. In fact, nearly every income cohort grew except
those earning less than $50,000 per year. This
correlates with the rapid rise in educational
attainment. Residents with Bachelor’s degrees or
Home values in Nashua are rising, rapidly.
The demand for owner-occupied housing units in
Nashua has driven prices up significantly over the last
ten years. From 2010 to 2019, home values have
appreciated 19%. The median sales price for a newly
constructed home in Nashua is $407,439 while the
median sales price of an existing home is $321,198.
higher increased 11%.
Nashua’s population is diversifying and
with it comes income disparity.
The number of Black, Asian, and Hispanic/Latino
residents increased between 2013 and 2018 but White
and Asian households continue to earn 2.5+ times the
income as Black and Hispanic/Latino households. This
has impacts on affordability, ability to pay for housing,
and concentrations of lower income households in
certain parts of the city.
Household income for renters is growing at
the highest income levels.
The number of renter households earning $75,000 or
more jumped significantly between 2013 and 2018.
This is likely fueling demand for newer, higher priced
rental units across the city and pushing prices upward
as these households can afford rents at the top of
Nashua’s market.
Rents are also increasing in Nashua.
Over the last five years, median gross rent rose 19% to
a high of $1,287 per month. The number of rental units
priced between $1,500 - $1,999 range grew 24% in
five years, the fastest of any rent range. Rent growth
has been driven by demand for smaller units, typically
1-bedroom units.
ONE- and TWO-person households are
driving growth.
Single-person and two-person households increased
12% and 22%, respectively between 2013 and 2018.
These two categories brought in nearly 1,500 new
households to the city. Larger households are not
increasing at nearly the same rate. This is translating
into demand for smaller units, particularly smaller
Nashua’s housing stock is predominately
single-family.
Single family housing comprises 86% of the residential
land area in Nashua. These units comprise 52% of all
housing units in the city. Buildings with less than 10
units account for 93% of residential land area and
74% of all housing units.
rentat units.
Downtown Nashua should be a housing
focus area.
The combination of high rental percentages, lower
incomes, racial and ethnic diversity, lower assessed
values, and older housing stock creates challenges for
stabilizing the housing in Downtown and maintaining
its general affordability. A balanced approach is
required to both introduce new market rate and
affordable housing, as well as strategic investments to
improve the quality of existing housing in the
Downtown area.
