Affordable Housing for the Aged in Australia: Challenges and Experiences

Table of Contents
1.0CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................1
1.1 Background information.....................................................................................................................1
1.2 Research Problem............................................................................................................................2
1.3 Justification......................................................................................................................................3
1.4 The study Aims................................................................................................................................3
1.5 General objective.............................................................................................................................3
1.5.1 Specific objectives.....................................................................................................................3
1.6 Research question............................................................................................................................4
2.0 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW...................................................................................5
2.1 Homelessness....................................................................................................................................5
2.2 Older homelessness..........................................................................................................................6
2.3 Unique Needs of Older Homeless People.......................................................................................6
3.0 CHAPTER THREE: MATERIALS AND METHODS....................................................................8
3.1Research design................................................................................................................................8
3.2 Sampling procedure and Sample size.............................................................................................8
3.3 Data collection tools.........................................................................................................................9
3.4 Data Analysis method......................................................................................................................9
3.5 Ethical Considerations....................................................................................................................9
References................................................................................................................................................10

1.0 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background information
In Australia, 70 percent of the older population who are dependent on ACHA (Assistance with
Care and Housing for the Aged) and are victims of homelessness (Wood and Ong, 2017).
Private rental market has been associated with increased numbered of homelessness for the aged
community. According to Petersen et al. (2014), the aged population facing household crisis for
the first time are the worst hit as they are unaware of the means to approach the homelessness
and elderly care sectors. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, the older
generation of Australia is rising and expected to double by the end of 2057 (Older Australia at a
glance, Demographics of older Australians - Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2018).
This increase in the ageing of the Australian population can be attributed to the rise in life
expectancy. 3.7 million Population in Australia is aged which makes up around 15 percent of the
population (Duncan et al., 2014).
The ageing of the population structure of Australia is replete with challenges as well as welfare
sectors in Australia (Peterson, 2015). Homelessness is an ageing policy issue and it is projected
that the ratio of people working and supporting the aged will decrease significantly. For
example, the projection by (Beer, 2012), indicates that by the year 2056 there will be three
working individuals for every elderly persons; whereas in the year 2007 there were 5 working-
age persons for every elderly person. The increase in ageing population worldwide presents with
weighty economic and fiscal concerns. The Australian Treasury has identified an increasingly
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ageing population as major factor driving the forecast reducing the economic growth as a result
of reduced labor as suggested by (Wilkins, 2017; Peterson, 2015).
According to Petersen et al. (2014), in Australia, 95% of the housing is under private ownership.
Therefore, housing stock and housing pricing is mostly dictated by the private sector: whereas,
the social rental housing only account for 5% of the housing sector as suggested by (Yates and
Bradbury, 2010). Consequently, the prices of the houses and rental paid by the tenants is
dependent on the market trends. Older households who were not able to access home ownership
when they were younger are more likely to face high housing costs in their retirement than older
households who are homeowners and, as a result, are more likely to have inadequate levels of
income to meet their non-housing needs (Yates and Bradbury, 2010).
In Australia, more than half of the aged population are found to be disabled and three-quarter of
the aged population have reported to experience good health. According to Arman et al. (2007),
in Australia 76 per cent of the aged population have their own home. According to Morris et al.
(2012), there was a surge in the house prices between 1995 to 2005 in Australia. There was a 6
per cent rise an average rise of 15 percent between 2001 and 2003. Affordable, accessible
housing is crucial for older people to age in place. Older people renting privately are unable to
sustain market rates of rent whilst reliant on the fixed low income of the aged pension.
According to Petersen et al. (2014), the policies preventing tenants from making modifications to
the properties is a major hindrance to the reduction in number of persons without homes and it is
only serving the interest of private rental sector.
1.2 Research Problem
There is limited information on the number of older individuals without stable homes and lack of
their age distribution in the Australian population. At the same time, the life course perspective
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has not been well studied and documented and its application on realization main pathways
resulting to homelessness, particularly risk factors and cause events, and their prevalence across
the life course. Most researchers have focused on gender and without putting into considerations
their ethnicity. Furthermore, the study have not considered the impact of multiple marginalized
categories on older homeless adult’s experiences and challenges faced which is very necessary.
1.3 Justification
The findings from this study will provide more information on the experiences and challenges of
the aged population who have availed the benefits of affordable housing. Hence, such
information will be of benefit to the government agencies when formulating intervention policies
around older homelessness. The findings from the interview with entrepreneurs will be enriching
for understanding the scenario of affordable housing in Australia.
1.4 The study Aims
The aim of this study is to understand the trend of affordable housing for the aged in Australia. It
also intends to document the experiences of the aged population who have availed the benefits of
affordable housing and investigate their lived experiences. The interview with entrepreneurs is
believed to be enriching for understanding the scenario of affordable housing in Australia.
1.5 General objective
To assess the challenges which older individuals face around housing security and whether any
factors are common among women and men which may contribute to a lack of housing security.
1.5.1 Specific objectives
1. To determine factors associated with affordable housing for the aged community
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