Later living

The answer to this is to invest – sooner rather than later – and build more specialist later living accommodation that's desirable both to investors and to residents. Investment in the later living market by the building of well placed, attractive developments together with a paradigm shift to how our later living journey is viewed wouldn't only offer a range of options to those looking for something between a family home and a care home, but would also allow the freeing up the “empty nest” housing stock of the UK, and therefore offer more options for those entering the housing market at the other end. 

While there are a number of challenges to achieving this level of development (planning policy /development viability/regulatory issues etc), perhaps the one single challenge facing investors and developers in the later living sector in the UK is that of knowledge.

Retirement villages, to name one type of accommodation, are new to the market with studies showing that residents in these villages retain independence and have a reduced need for social care. While there remains some nervousness around the leasing and service charge structuring of these villages (both from the investor and resident) more information and education in these areas, as well as the government overhaul of the commonhold regime and greater planning policy support, could do much to ease fears and see their popularity increase.