The Future of Housing - Part 6
The issues we’ve discussed over the last 5 weeks have focused on location, infrastructure, and changing our perceptions of what housing means in a modern society.
These elements, whilst a good start, are not magical solutions on their own. I believe we need to challenge our view of what being a home owner means, and how we live, not just where. In this debate I believe there are 4 key areas that need to be explored –
1. Staged Housing
2. Generational Living
3. Ageing in Place
4. Generational Finance Solutions
Staged Housing
Traditionally housing requirements over a lifetime form a bell curve. As a young couple, you only need 1 bedroom and can only afford something small to start off. As the family grows you need more bedrooms and a second bathroom. As the kids leave home you then need less space, and as you age, accessibility and ageing in place become your key issues.
Traditionally we buy and sell homes as our circumstances require these changes. But every time we transact a house, it costs us significantly in terms of Stamp Duties and other red tape costs.
Why can’t we design a home that can be constructed in stages? As our family expands and our finances permit, we can add the extra stages? The design then allows for independent generational housing and, finally independent ageing in place. It can be done, and is in fact starting to happen. But there are two key hurdles that stand in the way at the moment –
1. Our attitude as a society to what housing means to us
2. The Financial Institutions’ acceptance of the value of smaller staged housing
These two hurdles are slowly being broken down, primarily driven by economics and affordability, but with a little focus and effort by our elected representatives, this could easily become a preferred housing model for the future.
Next week…Generational Living
John Rosel