Question

Approximately 95 percent of those over 65 reside in their own homes, and many own their homes. Older adults may ‘downsize’ to a smaller home, or remodel their homes. Why? and What is this called?

Answer 1

Downsizing means moving to a house with a smaller sized dwelling and/or monetary value (Judd et al, 2014). People may downsize in later life for numerous reasons, including to release equity, to move to a more manageable property or a property that is less expensive to heat and run or to move closer to the family. The number of older adults (age 65 and older) has risen significantly because of increasing life expectancy.

Older adulthood is a time of transition. Most health problems experienced by older adults are chronic in nature and often affect the person's ability to live independently. Most older adults live independently. Ageing can be examined from a life expectancy, the percentage of total population, or life-span perspective.

A naturally occurring retirement community is one in which the person ages in place, living in the same home as always and in a neighbourhood where the neighbours have aged together and provided support for each other through the years. A continuing care retirement community is residential living (e.g., cottages, cluster homes, apartments) into which a person must move and is called as de-escalation during the old age.