Abstract:

This paper reports on the final findings of a national, interdisciplinary research project into age-specific housing for lower-income older Australians funded by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute. The key research aim addressed, concerns Australia’s current age-specific housing market and its potential growth among low to moderate-income older people. This is in a context where there is very little consensus on what housing types or models constitute age-specific housing and there are no academic studies, Australian-based or international, that provide a comprehensive overview or typology of this market. A multi-method approach was developed which comprised five stages: A literature review and policy review of the Australian age-specific housing market: a quantitative profile of the housing market and its consumers: a questionnaire survey of age-specific housing providers and older residents of age-specific housing: qualitative interviews with older people in age-specific housing, housing providers, and key policy stakeholders, and public engagement via policy forums in NSW, Victoria and Western Australia. Our research findings indicate that much of the current supply of age-specific housing is quite old and not particularly suitable for older consumers. Further that the growing demand for affordable age-specific housing needs 10 be better matched by supply of low-cost options from providers in the market. Nevertheless, white it is a priority of certain providers to provide low-cost housing, feedback from providers suggests that the provision of tow-cost housing is in the main not profitable.