Slim pickings for retirees

PROPERTIES IN HIGH DEMAND

LEADING Cairns real estate agents say there’s a need for more suitable housing for those seeking to downsize, with more than a third of the region’s population aged over 50 and 22 per cent aged 60plus.

David Hall of Explore Property said older residents were seeking lowmaintenance, new or recently renovated “lock up and leave” properties that did not require much garden care.

“There is a market and there should be more facilities designed specifically for this purpose — low-maintenance, level, secure, suitable for pets, and quiet and peaceful,” Mr Hall said.

Therese Plath of Ray

White Cairns South said younger buyers taking advantage of first homeowner incentives were snapping up smaller properties sought after by an older demographic.

“There is probably a shortage because of this and it makes it harder for people to downsize,” Ms Plath said.

“There is demand for more properties for more mature buyers who want less maintenance, but don’t want to go into a unit — they still want to have grass under their feet and be able to have a little dog,” Ms Plath said.

The Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) says stamp duty and other costs associated with selling and buying mean older people can remain in homes no longer suitable for their stage of life.

Tom Quaid of Quaid Real Estate predicted a trend towards smaller, boutique-style community title developments with three or four villas rather than 20 units.

“In Cairns, there has been very few new units available for the last decade, and older complexes can have elevated body corporate fees,” he said.

“An alternative is a smaller project where you have a detached home, common gardens but your own yard too — kind of a hybrid between a house and an apartment — and you can deal with the insurance like a normal home rather than a big 20unit project.

“It’s scaled right down, it is a new niche.”