Residential and retirement developments, what’s the difference?

First of its kind research, by Dr Lois C Towart from the School of Built Environment Research Centre (CiRi) at the University of Technology Sydney identifies the need for planners to think differently about age-friendly communities. 

“Retirement village residents have distinct requirements, and you can see it through the size of the apartments and the extent of community facilities included in these developments,” Dr Towart said. 

“Prospective and current retirement village residents are looking for design outcomes that appeal to older people looking for their forever home. On the other hand, the built form of a residential development is designed to appeal to investors, tenants and owner occupiers.

“Retirement villages provide living areas, bathrooms and kitchens that are designed to be accessible for older people. They also have extensive community facilities that give residents the opportunity for social interaction, health and wellness. 

“Residents in general residential developments are not demanding community facilities for meaningful social interaction with others in the building.” Dr Towart said. 

Dr Towart’s research sheds light on the increasing need for planners to recognise the importance of age-friendly communities, like retirement villages, and the role they play in supporting the health and wellbeing of Australia’s ageing population. 

Ben Myers, the Executive Director of the Retirement Living Council said that high competition for residential land causes headaches for retirement village developers. 

“Without planning schemes that encourage age-friendly communities, it’s tough to find suitable and affordable land for retirement villages.” 

“Retirement village operators often have to take significant financial risks to navigate long and uncertain planning approval processes. This means the supply of purpose-built age-friendly communities is not keeping pace with the growth in the number of older Australian’s.” 

“Dr Towart’s research is an important step in getting governments to think about retirement villagse differently,” said Mr Myers. 

You can access the research here.