Age Concern New Zealand welcomed the opportunity to submit on the Long-Term Insights
Briefing Consultation Document: The long-term implications of our ageing population for our
housing and urban futures.
Age Concern New Zealand is a long-time advocate for Age Friendly environments and communities. Neighbourhood design is key. People of all ages, including seniors, need to be close to public transport, social and health services, government services, recreation and amenities.
Our ageing population is diverse and requires multiple forms of housing tenure. We would like to see affordable, healthy, secure housing referred to as a human right.
We recommend supporting and incentivising Community Housing Providers and Māori Housing Providers to increase the number of houses for older people. Building code changes are also required to ensure all the different forms of housing tenures are appropriate for people across their life course.
There is an increasing number of older renters in Aotearoa and various housing models need to be available so that older renters can age in place, including when they are on low, fixed incomes.