Ageing in place: intergenerational and intrafamilial housing transfers and shifts in later life
A research project for the Australian Housing and Research Institute (AHURI) Centre has indicated a significant shift in the values and priorities of older Australians which is transforming the patterns of future housing tenure, lifestyle and family relationships.
The project, led by Diana Olsberg, surveyed nearly 7,000 older Australians (aged 50 years and over) about their intentions for future housing, inheritance, and legacies for their children.
The research found that there is a clear relationship between housing tenure and age and people’s desire to age in place or move in the future. Home-ownership is a conduit to greater possibilities of self-determination of an older person’s future lifestyle choices.
The most significant feature of the responses of older Australians was their desire to have a sense of flexibility with regard to their lifestyle intentions during the last years of their life. Desires for independence, flexibility, consumer and lifestyle choices increasingly take precedence, challenging traditional notions of old age and family obligations.
The report produced from this study is available for download from AHURI at www.ahuri.edu.au
