Elderly housing

What is Council’s role in providing housing for the elderly?

Taupō District Council provides 57 housing for the elderly units throughout Taupō, Tūrangi and Mangakino, and will continue to do so.

One of the goals Taupō District Council wants to achieve through its Housing Stategy is that homes in the district meet the diverse needs of its communities.

Part of achieving this will be by having more availability and choice of housing for elderly and people with disabilities.

Council housing for older people should be warm, dry, safe and accessible, especially as older people may have disability or mobility requirements.

We want our housing for the elderly complexes to have a sense of community, with shared green spaces or places to socialise; and to also feel connected to the community around them so that older people are not isolated.

Council housing for the elderly should also be located close to amenities such as public transport and shops so that older people can easily access the services they need.

What issues does the Taupō District face?

While Council’s housing for the elderly is well-maintained, many of the units are out-dated or not fit for purpose. Substantive refurbishment and investment are required to make them more suitable and bring them up to standards, which comes at a cost to ratepayers. Some complexes are also old-fashioned in design and do not effectively and efficiently use the site.

There is a shortage of supported housing for older people and a lack of providers, with Council and Tūwharetoa the only two providers in the Taupō District. More than 120 people are on Council's waiting list for a supported pensioner unit.

Demand is predicted to increase with a rapidly growing number of renters reaching retirement age who can’t afford to move into retirement villages and lack adequate housing options.

While we don’t plan to stop providing housing for the elderly, there are some options we would like to explore.

As a council, we can’t access income-related rent subsidies for our tenants. If we partnered with a community housing provider (CHP) in the housing for the elderly space, that would mean the CHP would qualify for the income related rent subsidy. Accessing this subsidy would allow us to keep investing in housing for the elderly.

At present, Council lacks the money to do this because the rents paid by the elderly are relatively low and do not cover the cost of bringing this housing up to a higher standard. Instead, it has to come from general rates.

What solutions is Council proposing?

As part of the next Long-term Plan, Council will develop a business case to assess the various options to provide rental housing for older people and improve outcomes for tenants. As part of this, Council will consider its ability and willingness to contribute resourcing and funding, directly or indirectly, in the redevelopment and building of rental-housing stock for elderly.

Council will also look at opportunities that give residents access to income-related rent subsidies, such as facilitating a process for a community housing regulatory authority to own or manage the units. Through this review, we want to make sure we get the best outcomes for tenants and that quality, affordable, and appropriately located housing options are available for Taupō's vulnerable older people.