‘You can’t put your roots down’: housing pathways, rental tenure and precarity in older age

Abstract

In light of housing affordability concerns, we examine older people’s experiences of renting within a context of enduring home-ownership norms and aspirations. Adapting Clapham’s housing pathways framework, we ask: How is rental tenure experienced by older people who have encountered precarity in their housing history? Drawing on interviews with 13 older tenants, we observe the uneasy relationship between tenure insecurity and housing quality, and tensions between choice and luck in experiences of renting in later life. Three pathways related to renting in older age were apparent: life-long renting; loss of homeownership through adversity; and deliberate decisions to transition to renting. We note that challenges encountered in current and previous housing situations lead to diverse narratives of precarity in later life. These precarious experiences can be exacerbated by intersecting uncertainties associated with health, financial and personal circumstances. Older tenants’ housing pathways and experiences illuminate ways in which precarity can disrupt opportunities for ageing well and ageing in place.

Keywords:

• Precarity
• housing pathways
• renting
• ageing
• New Zealand

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1 The New Zealand Superannuation (pension) is distributed to all citizens and permanent residents over 65 years of age. Individual fortnightly net payments range from ND632-822, depending on marital status, partner’s age and taxation rate (the latter being increased for those with other income sources).

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by a University of Auckland subcontract for the 'Life When Renting' programme (led by the second author), funded by the New Zealand National Science Challenge 'Ageing Well' and led by Dr Kay Saville-Smith of CRESA (Centre for Research Evaluation and Social Assessment).

Notes on contributors

Laura Bates

Laura Bates completed an MA in Geography in the School of Environment, University of Auckland in 2018 and is currently a doctoral student in the Human Geography Program at the University of Alberta.

Robin Kearns

Robin Kearns is Professor of Geography at the School of Environment, University of Auckland.

Tara Coleman

Tara Coleman is a Research Fellow in the School of Environment at the University of Auckland.

Janine Wiles

Janine Wiles is an Associate Professor in the School of Population Health at the University of Auckland.