Ryan Ip,Maira QamarandIngrid Li

Opinion | Hong Kong’s elderly need housing options beyond care homes and living with family

Traditional options for senior living such as care homes or moving in with family are growing less viable amid demographic change and other trends

Providing Hong Kong’s elderly with more options such as ageing in place and exclusive senior housing can help delay or avoid putting them in care homes

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Elderly residents at the Dills Corner Garden care home in Sheung Shui. Living with family or in a care home are among the most common ideas people have about senior living, but embracing and enabling ageing in place could open more options to ease Hong Kong’s shortage of housing for elderly people. Photo: Felix Wong

Ryan Ip,Maira QamarandIngrid Li

Published: 9:30am, 14 Oct 2023

Have you ever thought about where you would live in your old age? Some might picture themselves moving in with family or living in residential care homes for the elderly.

But what if these options are not your first choice, no longer feasible or you simply want to maintain your independence? In such instances, what alternatives are available to you? Emerging trends, including changes in family support owing to low fertility rates and the exodus of young families, suggest that living with family might no longer be as common as we once thought.

Additionally, the overwhelming demand for care homes has resulted in average wait times of about two years, with some elderly people dying while still in the queue. There is also a view of residential care services as a last resort, with people avoiding them because of their poor reputation and inherent restrictions.

The options for living in one’s golden years should be abundant. There could be exclusive senior housing with basic in-house medical and support services, enhanced support services in existing flats or even intergenerational housing. By providing alternative options, seniors can delay or even avoid institutionalisation in care homes.

Hong Kong’s government has long advocated for “ageing in place” as the cornerstone of its elderly policy, aiming to enable elderly to live in a familiar place for as long as possible. However, there is a significant disconnect between policy objectives and current practices.

Spending on residential care services has consistently exceeded spending on community care services in the past decade, with the latest budget estimating a difference of nearly 2.5 times. So far, Hong Kong government’s actions speak differently from its vision of ageing in place.