Retirees find apartment living beats maintaining old houses
Some older Australians love apartment living; shortage of large units blocks others from switching.
Some older Australians are downsizing from family homes to apartments and loving the change. John Turner, 72, and his wife Kathryn moved eight years ago from an 850-square-metre block to an inner-city apartment.
The couple enjoy being near transport, markets, the cinema and a hospital. Bryan Worn, 78, moved last year and no longer misses mowing lawns or cleaning up storm damage.
Costs include strata fees, stamp duty and moving expenses. The real barrier is a shortage of larger apartments.
Downsizers often want three-bedroom units, but builders focus on smaller ones.
- 72
- John Turner's age
- 850 square metres
- Family block size
- 4 decades
- Time at family home
- 78
- Bryan Worn's age
Why it mattersDownsizing offers older Australians a way to improve quality of life after retirement, with less work.
AustraliaAustralia needs to build more large apartments to help retirees downsize without sacrificing space for aging families.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 2 h ago
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