Guest Blog: FirstPort “The Rise of the Retirement Roomie: Over 55s consider house shares to save money and avoid loneliness”

  • Approximately one in three (30%) over 55s would consider a house share in later life
  • 63% cite finances, whilst 40% say it’s to avoid loneliness
  • It’s mates’ rates over interest rates with a third (31%) open to living with a friend in retirement

House sharing isn’t just for the young according to new research out today which found that one in three (30%) people over 55 would consider having a housemate in later life to save money and avoid living alone.

Proving that best friends are forever, almost a third (31%) of the 2,000 over 55-year-olds polled said they would be open to moving in with a friend in retirement, with more than one in six (18%) admitting that they’d rather live with friends than family.  An adventurous 4% said they’d consider renting with a complete stranger.

The UK’s leading property management service provider, FirstPort, who commissioned the study, believes the ‘retirement roomie’ trend will only continue to grow as people look to save money. The company has seen a 27% increase in enquiries for independent-living retirement developments in the last year, with many requesting to move to the same development as their friends – some even as next-door neighbours.

According to the research, one in eight (12%) of the Baby Boomers questioned said the pandemic had changed their attitude towards communal living but financial fears (63%) remained their biggest concern.  Other reasons cited for co-living were company (40%), safety (25%) and sharing household chores and admin (15%). Suggesting it’s not all doom and gloom, one in five (20%) said they’d live with others to have fun and 17% would do so to enjoy shared hobbies and interests together.

When asked what they fear most about later life living, two thirds (68%) said losing their independence, closely followed by not having enough money (48%) and being alone (38%). One in six (15%) were concerned about losing touch with family and friends.  A review of Twitter and retirement forums found that ‘friends’ and ‘making friends’ were the most frequently used words in conversations about later life**.

David Sinclair, ILC Chief Executive says: “As we get older, we spend an increasing amount of time at home alone and watching the television. By the time we reach our 90s these are the most common activities we take part in.

“In old age our network of friends and family is often smaller than it was. One in five of us doesn’t have children and we are more likely than in the past to be divorced or separated.

“We’d like to see more diverse options for housing for older people, and this includes living with friends, which shouldn’t just be for younger people. House-sharing is a great way to build and strengthen relationships and enjoy the company of others, rather than just the characters on our TV screens.”

Gareth Cayford, Director Retirement at FirstPort says: “The events of the last few years have had seismic impact on people’s attitudes towards later life, leading many to completely re-think what they want in retirement, and who they want to spend it with. 

“We are seeing a growing number of enquiries for friends and families looking to live near each other or in the same development buildings, and we expect this to continue to rise in the future – especially with increasing living costs. It’s not just a prudent choice but one that demonstrates that independent retirement development living – with communal lounges and spaces to socialise with friends – is more important than ever”

Ceinwen Kerslake (85) and Gillian Morgan (77), have been friends for over 40 years and live next door to each other in communal development, Homegower House, Swansea. Gillian says: “After both losing our husbands, we each experienced the loneliness of being widows living in larger houses and wanted to downsize. I would come and visit Cei who moved into the development first, and eventually decided to buy a flat of my own right next door!

“Living next door to each other has brought us closer together as friends, we now spend five days a week together, doing activities like eating out with friends and joining in the developments activities.”

Cei added: “Living so close to each other gives us the peace of mind that we can rely on each other when needed, whether that’s a medical emergency or just borrowing milk for a cup of tea.

“We actually tend to share food and save money on our weekly shop! We never expected to live so close to each other in later life but the company we offer has brought us so much joy, we would encourage anyone in a similar situation to us to do the same.”

ENDS

Notes

*FirstPort partnered with 3Gem to survey 2,000 over 55 year olds between 10/08/2022 – 24/08/2022.

**Data pulled from Relative Insight analysing twitter conversations between 2021 and 2022

About FirstPort

FirstPort is the UK’s leading residential property services provider, caring for 310,000 homes in England, Wales and Scotland, across 5,600 developments.  With over four decades of experience and 4,000 employees, FirstPort works with developers, investors, freeholders and over 1,300 Resident Management Companies. FirstPort is a member of the Association of Residential Managing Agents (ARMA), the Association of Retirement Housing Managers (ARHM), and Property Managers Association Scotland (PMAS).  As well as holding a Five Star Rating from the British Safety Council, it has been awarded the British Safety Council’s prestigious Sword of Honour, is an accredited Safe Agent and belongs to The Property Ombudsman.  FirstPort holds a Silver Investors in People accreditation and has been named as one of the UK’s Top Employers by the Top Employers’ Institute for the last four consecutive years.

For more information, please visit: www.firstport.co.uk

FirstPort is part of ILC’s Partners Programme. To find out more about working with us please click here

FirstPort

FirstPort

(Member of ILC's Partners Programme)