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The ageing of Australia’s population has implications for the economy, social policy, community services and housing. This project focused on the efficiency of older residents’ homes, in particular, home owners. It offers greater understanding of how older home owners regard and utilise their housing and land, and their views about more ‘efficient’ alternatives. It also examined the role of housing and neighbourhood design in enabling people to remain living in their own homes. It found that despite the apparent under utilisation of their dwellings according to the commonly used Canadian National Occupancy Standard, the majority of older people regard their house as suitable for their needs. Extra bedrooms are used to accommodate temporary visitors and to pursue recreational activities. Older home owners expressed an overwhelming preference for remaining in their own homes, though approximately half would be prepared to live in housing specifically for older people. Few were prepared to live with their children. Based on this finding, a cost benefit analysis of three approaches to housing design to facilitate ageing in place was undertaken. Visitable design was the easiest and most cost effective to implement, whereas adaptable and universal design were more costly. The study highlighted the significance of neighbourhood design and the provision of appropriate public facilities to enable older people to maintain social participation and age in place.
http://www.ahuri.edu.au/publications/projects/p70392/