The demand for specialist retirement housing is arguably greater than that for Starter Homes, and requires urgent government attention as a crisis looms. There are more than 11m people in the UK aged 65-years-old and over, and the number is expected to increase by 2% annually. However, even though roughly a quarter of people currently aged 65-plus have expressed a desire to downsize, a lack of choice, as well as misconceptions around modern retirement housing stock, is preventing them from making the step. On the supply side, developers are being hindered by poor recognition of the scale of demand, plus confusing local plans. Senior commentators joined an Estates Gazette round table last week to thrash out the challenges and opportunities in the specialist retirement homes sector. The round table included: Gary Day, group land and planning director, McCarthy & Stone Tom Scaife, partner, institutional consultancy, Knight Frank Neal Hudson, associate director, residential research, Savills Claudia wood, chief executive, Demos Michael Ball, professor of urban and property economics, School of Real Estate and Planning, Henley Business School, University of Reading Chaired by Rebecca Kent, special projects editor, Estates Gazette The round table was held in association with McCarthy & Stone and hosted by Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co.
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