Abstract
This article describes the findings of a study in the Cape Metropolitan Area and its fringe districts of the perceptions, preferences and needs of elderly persons and the views of housing providers for the elderly regarding retirement housing and related care services. Interviews were conducted with 228 sampled elderly persons in neighbourhoods with a high concentration of the elderly and in selected retirement villages in the study area. The views of experts on retirement housing and role players in the field of elderly care were elicited separately. The basic preferences of the elderly can be summarized as: renting residential units instead of buying them; no luxuries such as therapy services; safety considerations incorporated in the design of the interior of the units; being able to use their own furniture in the units; primary health care offered; availability of recreational facilities; good corporate management; and accessibility to essential general services (in terms of the location of the village). These findings are considered for consumers in different cultural and socio-economic groups and are also compared with the views of developers, housing providers and other role players. It is contended that - given the Government’s new policy on housing and care for the elderly - the findings may assist the providers of retirement housing and related care services to understand the diversity of needs of the South African mature retirement market and to provide facilities and services accordingly.
Highlights
Recent legislation has created a new situation in the field of housing for the aged in South Africa
How large is the housing market for non-frail elderly individuals, and how rapidly can it be expected to expand in future? Secondly, what proportion of the non-frail elderly housing market is currently - and will in future be - dependent on purpose-built housing for the aged, being unable or unwilling to live independently on their own and/or to find accommodation with family or friends
In view of the changed circumstances in the elderly housing market, the question arises - and this was a principal focus in the research - whether in future retirement villages might not be capable of providing housing for a greater percentage of elderly people than at present
Summary
The views, perceptions, preferences and needs of two samples of elderly respondents served as the principal data source in this respect
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