The downsizing market continues to grow

A survey has found that Baby Boomers are no longer buying traditional retirement housing, opting instead for a scaled-down version of the family home.

The findings suggest Baby Boomers looking to downsize are starting to reject communal retirement living in place of low maintenance free-standing homes that allow them to continue their lifestyles. In fact, 55 per cent of respondents said they would downsize to a small detached house on its own block of land and another 9.6 per cent chose a townhouse as their preferred option. Only 3.2 per cent of respondents said they would move to a retirement village. 

What the analysis show us is that the generation approaching retirement in today’s market are doing so with different expectations around housing compared to generations before them. 

In addition, Baby Boomers are also one of the wealthiest generations in history, owning the bulk of the nation's $2 trillion-plus in super funds as well as often owning property outright that has increased exponentially in value over the past 30 years.   

Taking all of this into account, the rapidly growing downsizing market has a lot to offer as Baby Boomers look to offload their existing property and buy into new homes.