Haverford is a great place to live. It's also getting harder to afford. The plan is honest about that tension and lays out a clear, targeted strategy for making sure this township stays accessible to more kinds of people at more stages of life.
The plan recommends updating the Zoning Ordinance to allow a range of housing types and densities in appropriate areas, with a focus on transit corridors
The plan calls for strengthening infill development policies to protect existing residential neighborhoods while creating room for new housing where it makes sense
Mixed-use development within a 10-minute walk of M Line stations is a named policy priority
The plan calls for establishing design standards to help ensure new mixed-use buildings fit their surroundings
The plan recommends the Township continue working with Discover Haverford to attract anchor businesses that make mixed-use corridors viable places to live as well as shop
The plan recommends housing options specifically designed for seniors and people with disabilities, so that longtime residents can age in place in the community they love
Haverford's median household income is $124,874, well above the Delaware County median of $83,960. But housing costs have grown nearly 45% in real terms since 2017, while incomes barely moved. The result is a township where people who already own homes tend to stay put indefinitely, and people who want to move here — young families, recent graduates, working adults, retirees looking to downsize — increasingly can't afford to do so.
The percentage of recent homebuyers dropped significantly between 2012 and 2022
Renters moving into new units dropped even more dramatically over the same period
Long-term homeownership is increasing, suggesting residents want to stay but the market isn't creating room for new ones
Young adults aged 25 to 29 declined as a share of the population, suggesting college graduates aren't coming back
Three quarters of all housing units in the township are single-family detached homes, leaving few options for people who want something different
"Given the fact that housing costs outpaced real income gains by 22-fold, this stagnation in new residents is likely caused by the national housing affordability crisis, the failure of wages to rise alongside these costs, and the lack of diverse housing options."
— Haverford 2035 Comprehensive Plan
The plan is more targeted than you might expect. It does not propose rezoning residential neighborhoods or building large apartment complexes throughout the Township. Instead, the strategy recommends allowing more housing types in specific commercial corridors near transit stations, where the infrastructure to support more residents already exists.
Think adding new apartments above storefronts a few blocks from an M Line stop. That kind of housing could serve people who are currently being priced out — younger residents, seniors looking to downsize, working adults who want to live somewhere walkable — without changing the character of established neighborhoods. If you want your kids to be able to afford moving back to Havertown someday, this kind of gentle density increase is the direction we can take to ensure that can happen.
The plan recommends focusing new housing in commercial corridors near M Line stations, particularly on Haverford Road between Ardmore Junction and Wynnewood
Upper-story apartments above existing commercial businesses are proposed as the primary model
The plan calls for zoning updates that would allow these mixed uses where they're currently not permitted, even in places where they already informally exist
Infill development is recommended in appropriate locations while protecting existing residential neighborhoods from commercial encroachment
The plan also recommends housing options designed for seniors and people with disabilities, recognizing that longtime residents deserve to age in place here
More housing near transit isn't just an affordability strategy. It's a transportation strategy and a community vitality strategy at the same time. Residents who live above a coffee shop and walk to the train don't need two cars. Foot traffic that supports local businesses comes from people who live close enough to walk. A township where more people can afford to live is a township where more kinds of people actually show up to the library, the parks, the restaurants, and the school board meetings.
We are a new community-led initiative bringing together neighbors who believe Haverford Township deserves better parks, stronger public spaces, and more vibrant places to gather. We'd love to have you with us.
