Table 1: Older private-renting households with rents in excess of 33 per cent of net income
Year Article continues after advert | Optimistic scenario (%) | Central scenario (%) | Pessimistic scenario (%) |
2017-18 | 54.1 | 54.1 | 54.1 |
2027-28 | 50.8 | 55.1 | 57.7 |
2037-38 | 54.9 | 64.7 | 77.3 |
2047-48 | 48.5 | 66.9 | 82.5 |
Source: SMF Analysis. Copyright: Money Management
The APPG believes that the answer lies with councils and social housing providers who, by building more homes suitable for older people, will allow older tenants to move to more suitable properties, and thereby release larger homes for use by younger tenants and their families. However, they currently produce around 2,000-3,000 rented homes a year for older people – a 10th of the amount that may be required.
But a packed domestic political agenda, let alone the need to address other longstanding issues, makes it unlikely that the UK will seize the opportunity to do something about this issue.
A change to this attitude may not take place until stories of pensioners struggling to find suitable accommodation became much more widespread.
