Gran-eration rent

More older people will be renting in the future - but what will this mean for their wellbeing?

IN the future, older people will be more likely to rent their homes - and this could impact their health, finances, and the quality and accessibility of their housing.

Those are the findings of a recent series of reports by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which are looking into the effects that an ageing population could have on our society.

They found that in recent years, the proportion of people in all age groups besides the very elderly who are renting privately has increased.

And while only 6% of people aged 65 years and over rent privately today, this is likely to increase in the future if people who are currently in their 30s, 40s and 50s in the private rental sector remain so into older ages.

This has implications for older people’s finances in the future.

Currently, over half of privately rented households containing someone aged 60 years or over (58%) pay over £6,000 a year (or £500 a month).

That’s compared with around a third (36%) of those buying with a mortgage and a fifth (20%) of those in the social rental sector.

The effects of renting aren’t just felt in terms of finances, but also in the quality of the homes available.

The report found that 9% of older people living in privately rented homes have had problems with rats and mice, more than double that of homeowners (4%).

And of all properties containing someone aged 60 years or over, privately rented properties were the most likely to fail on every criteria of the Decent Homes Standard.

That looks at hazards, thermal comfort, repair, and modern facilities.

Renting can also have an impact on people’s health.

The ONS found that people aged 60 to 69 years old living in the private rented sector were more likely to report bad general health than those living in their own homes.

However, this becomes less of an issue above the age of 70, because differences in health across tenures are less clear-cut as health is more likely to worsen for all at later ages.

The authors wrote: “Older people currently renting privately live in homes that are more likely to be of poor quality, with higher housing costs than owner occupiers and are less likely to be able to adapt their homes to their changing needs.

“In the future, if recent trends continue, more older people are likely to be living in the private rental sector. But the characteristics of the private rental sector in the future may be different from today.

“Recent policy initiatives have introduced legislation that aims to tackle poor-quality homes and give renters a greater ability to challenge their landlords on unsafe housing.

“So while these policies will benefit tomorrow’s generation of older private renters, the 7% of today’s older people who are renting in the private sector may not have seen their effects.”