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Older Australia at a glance
Homelessness is a growing problem for older Australians, and will likely continue to increase over time due to an ageing population and declining rates of home ownership among older people.
Over the last decade, the number of older homeless people increased by 49%, with the largest changes measured in people aged 65–74 and 55–64.
2018
'It's a Great Idea for Other People': Cohousing as an option for older Australians
Older Australians face housing challenges including supply, accessibility, affordability, security of tenure and isolation. This article reports on research conducted in the state of New South Wales, Australia into the potential for cohousing to address these challenges.
2018
Themes:
Roadmap provides solutions for older women's homelessness
More can be done to ensure the aged care system meets its responsibility for older women experiencing or at risk of homelessness, according to new research backed by providers in the housing, homelessness and aged care sectors.
The research highlights the rapid increase in older women experiencing and at risk of homelessness and found that the implementation of aged care service information, asse
2018
Themes:
Unsettled: Life in Australia's Private Rental Market
Unsettled: Life in Australia's private rental market, makes the case that rental rights in Australia lag far behind those in many other developed countries, where renters often enjoy secure long-term arrangements with strict limits on rent increases.
By contrast, leases in Australia can be as short as six months, and when the contract ends and renters revert to a month-to-month arrangement t
2017
Themes:
Housing stress 'dire' as elderly Canberra women resort to sleeping in cars
Women more than 80 years old are turning to Canberra's homeless services for shelter, forced out of housing by the ACT's rental market, low savings and family violence.
Homelessness services are reporting a rise in clients who are elderly women, some resorting to sleeping in cars and couch surfing for shelter before seeking help.
2017
Is Housing a Health Insult?
Abstract:
In seeking to understand the relationship between housing and health, research attention is often focussed on separate components of people’s whole housing ‘bundles’.
2017
Themes:
Staying Power: Aging in Community and the Village Model
In the US, older adults are remaining in their homes in increasing numbers and are part of a paradigm shift that is transferring healthcare services from a centralized institutional model to a decentralized home-based model. However, a majority of homes older adults reside in lack basic accessibility features and are in predominantly suburban
locations that have limited transportation options.
2017
Room to improve. The role of home adaptations in improving later life
This UK report summarises the findings of a systematic review of the best recent scientific evidence on how home adaptations can contribute to improving later lives.
The last comprehensive review of the evidence on home adaptations was published in 2007.
2017
Themes:
Why older Australians don’t downsize and the limits to what the government can do about it
Encouraging senior Australians to downsize their homes is one of the more popular ideas to make housing more affordable. The trouble is, incentives for downsizing would hit the budget, but make little difference to housing affordability. This article looks at government incentives that could release housing stock without financially penalising older home owners.
2017
Themes:
"There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort."