Senior living: the untapped power of the owner-occupied sector

The ageing population presents the Netherlands with a major housing challenge. The national programme includes 290,000 homes for seniors and for living with care up to and including 2030, of which 120,000 are clustered or suitable for care. Step-free homes are now being delivered on a large scale, but there remains a significant challenge in the clustered and care-suitable segment: from this year onwards, around 24,000 homes per year must be added to this category. According to the national performance agreements, Aedes, via housing associations, delivers around 50% of this commitment, while investors in the private-rented segment traditionally account for approximately 10%. This means that around 40%—about 10,000 homes per year—must be delivered in the owner-occupied sector. That is logical: more than 60% of current and future older people live in an owner-occupied home. Many are attached to home ownership and also have substantial assets tied up in (often largely mortgage-free) homes. Yet in discussions about senior living, too little attention is paid to the enormous potential of this “capital” when sufficient suitable (care) purchase homes are available—and the transition within ownership: for example, to comfortable apartments with amenities, shared facilities and possibly care nearby. In recent years, the Aanjaagteam Wonen, Welzijn en Zorg voor Ouderen has worked to accelerate this housing challenge. The programme ends in 2026, even though the commitment has by no means been completed. The question therefore is: how will market parties and governments take over from here together? How do we organise ensuring that the owner-occupied sector genuinely contributes to this societal task—and thus to the future of senior living in the Netherlands? At this session, we bring together developers, financiers, policymakers and representatives of housing consumers to discuss what is needed to get this market moving.