Older people, house-sitting and ethics of care

Abstract

Urbanisation, housing affordability and an ageing population are key focus areas in major cities in Australia and worldwide. A lack of affordable housing is affecting a greater number of people, and particularly, a growing number of older populations. This paper draws inspiration from Power and Mee (Housing Studies, 35(3), 496, 2020) and asks: ‘is this a housing system that cares?’ The paper explores opportunities for care that emerge from practices of house-sharing and in particular house-sitting. Findings from semi-structured interviews with older house-sitters (aged 50 years and over) suggested house-sitting provides an affordable shelter for older people experiencing financial insecurity, thus has the potential to increase their capacity for care-related expenditure. Housing mobility, insecure tenure and a lack of a caring governance to manage the relationship between owners and sitters can however put older house-sitters in a vulnerable position, leading to negative impacts on their wellbeing. The research findings inform housing policy-makers and researchers about the growing practices of house-sitting among older people, and help grow and sustain a housing system that cares.