Before COVID 9% of older Australians were focused on downsizing, now it’s 47% and more

Life was never going to be the same after the COVID-19 pandemic.

For months Australians have been isolated in their own homes, which has played a crucial role in stopping the spread of the virus through this country.

But there are consequences.

Amid the shock of isolation and the disruption to day-to-day routine, many Australians are starting to sit down and take stock of their current situation.

The result is that the number of older Australians who are looking to retirement communities for the purpose of downsizing has jumped from a small 9% to a significant 47%.

Research commissioned by our sister company DCM Research in January 2018, surveying 1,109 people over the age of 65, looked at the main reasons people were considering a retirement community move. 9% of respondents said they were doing so because they wanted to downsize.

DCM commissioned new research over the past five weeks to see how this sentiment has changed. 30 face-to-face interviews with people living in their own home found 47% of respondents said being able to downsize while they still can is their chief motivation in moving to a retirement community.

This makes sense. Months of COVID-19 has been a huge disruption and older Australians now want control over their living situation. Planning ahead can set us up for the surprises life keeps serving.