Do older Australians want retirement villages? ECH research says ‘no’

South Australian Not For Profit operator ECH, with 1,660 ILUs across 96 locations, commissioned Flinders University to research what sort of housing older Australians want. Over 1200 people participated. Project leader Professor Beer summarised the results: “The ‘new age’ of older people insist that their home enables their life, not burden it. They reject any notion that aged housing is a container into which older people retreat to live out their later years. They want their retirement home to be just like the home that they have now – a base from which they go out to engage their neighbourhood, their community and the world.”

The research summarises the ‘ideal’ purpose-built aged housing as:
• Groups of 10 or fewer single-storey dwellings with two bedrooms and larger, more spacious rooms
• Located within the broader community, rather than confined to estates
• Close to local neighbourhoods in order to stay connected with friends, family, healthcare professionals, service providers and importantly, public transport
• Enable independent living for as long as possible
• Offer a range of tenure and pricing arrangements to cater for lower income retirees. This may range from rental, purchase, a ‘donation’ model and other variants

The Chief Executive of ECH, Rob Hankins, said ECH is keen to share the findings with Industry and government.