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Pelham in rear-view mirror for most seniors?

BY VOICE STAFF It’s Grim Expectations for older Pelham residents when it comes to whether they think they’ll be able to continue living in Pelham after they retire and into their later years.
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BY VOICE STAFF

It’s Grim Expectations for older Pelham residents when it comes to whether they think they’ll be able to continue living in Pelham after they retire and into their later years.

The answers of 271 respondents to our survey on senior housing affordability paint a stark picture of gloom.

As real estate prices continue to escalate, fully 85% of those aged 50 and up do not expect to be able to afford living in Pelham when they downsize before or during retirement. This is due primarily to what 8 out of 10 respondents consider an affordable home price: $350,000. This is already well below the Pelham average of $536,279 as of November 2016 (Source: Debbie Pine).

Nearly two-thirds of those aged 50-plus expect to downsize before entering assisted living. Of these, a little over a third say they’ll downsize to a small detached house or to a townhome, with the rest looking to buy a condo or to rent an apartment.

A bit over half of respondents said that an affordable rent would be $850 to $1,000 a month. (An apparently well-off 4% of respondents said they’d be happy paying over $1,600 per month.)

The majority of respondents have lived in Pelham for 20 years or longer, are married, aged 65 or older, and own their homes.

Paradoxically, while there is overwhelming support for moves to legalize and regulate comparatively affordable in-law apartments, respondents were equally adamant (82%) that they themselves will not seek to live in them.

Finally, 85% of respondents say that the Town of Pelham should require developers to include affordable senior housing in new developments.

For charts showing full survey results, see our website, http://www.thevoiceofpelham.ca/seniors