Buying property for post retirement years.
With growing wealth, health and longer lifespans, senior citizens are increasingly living an active post-retirement life. They are taking time to indulge in hobbies and passions to live a quiet life among likeminded peer group doing their own thing.
This has naturally created a new niche in the property world – retirement housing projects.
New sociological aspects too are adding to their necessity. The collapse of India’s traditional family support system has given rise to an increased number of nuclear families in the country. In India, more than 60% households are nuclear today and nearly 9% of the population is 60-plus, indicating that the aged are in greater need of support than ever.
However housing for senior citizens is still a fairly new concept in India, and it is only in the last decade or so that developers have focused on building senior citizen-specific projects.
Retirement housing properties are designed and maintained keeping in mind special requirements of senior citizens who need care and assistance with growing age. Apart from secured campuses, emergency response systems and maintenance and house-keeping services, they come specially fitted with grab rails, anti-skid tiles, passageways for wheelchairs, among other features, which make life easier for the elderly.
The residents no longer have to worry about minute details of daily household errands, paying bills, security issues and timely medical treatment. There are systems for prompt response to medical emergencies by way of doctors, ambulances and tie-ups with nearby hospitals. Some projects also offer continuing care units for their ailing residents.
According to Mr. Anil Mithas, CMD of Mithas Group, “Not just the elderly, even young people are beginning to invest in retirement homes because the social stigma of putting your parents in retirement homes is decreasing. On the contrary, it is preferred because they know that they will have company and be adequately cared for. That apart, we have also introduced a unique product: MEDIFLOORS at UNNATI FORTUNE WORLD, Sector 144, Noida Expressway specially for doctors. Located in the heart of the corporate & residential development along the Noida Expressway, these are premium spaces specially designed keeping in mind the professional needs of doctors along with attached washrooms, a common grand reception, waiting lounge, cafeteria, lab & testing facilities, pharmacy & essential health services. With rising lifestyle diseases, greater health awareness and increasing insurance penetration, we hope to meet the strong demand from urban mid to high income residential settlement along Noida Expressway, with this product.”
When buying a property for post-retirement life, the main influencing factors are proximity with ancestral and current properties, climate, infrastructure and healthcare facilities. For young buyers, the appreciation potential of the property is also important.
Additionally, when you start living in your retirement house, you can also reverse mortgage it to a bank for generating a steady income flow.
Apart from metropolitan cities, places like Pune, Bangalore, Chennai, Kochi and Goa are preferred choices for retirement housing properties. Hill stations and pilgrimage centres like Coorg, Haridwar, Rishikesh and Vrindavan are also popular among senior citizens.
Some senior citizen residential projects offer independent villas as well as apartments of different sizes in a wide price range. Properties located in smaller cities are of course relatively cheaper.
Retirement housing projects however have restrictions on who can buy and live in these communities. Some developers allow young buyers to purchase their properties, but only people above a certain age (55 years in most cases) are allowed to live in them. Some developers sell these properties only to senior citizens or young buyers with a co-owner who is above 55 years of age. There are restrictions on resale of these properties as well.
Whether your are young or retired, if you are tempted by the idea of spending your sunset years in one of the retirement housing communities in your preferred destination, don’t be afraid of exploring the options.
Senior citizens can also rent such properties for a short interval and experience the concept before taking the final call.
Source: http://www.unnatifortune.com/