We're all going to be seniors someday, if we're not there already, so this is a topic that should be near and dear to each and every one of us. Your committee is doing important work here, and thank you so much for inviting me here to speak to you today.
As a researcher and a community-based social planner in the capital region of British Columbia, I'm focused on housing and homelessness predominantly. In my work, I am seeing an increase in the number of seniors being affected by our current housing crisis. The two most important factors to consider are incomes and the need for supportive, inclusive communities.
We know that maintaining independence is important to seniors in B.C. and across Canada. According to the Office of the Seniors Advocate of British Columbia, “Seniors want to age as independently as possible in their own homes and in their local communities.” Research conducted by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation in 2008 revealed that 85% of Canadians over the age of 55 plan to remain present in their home for as long as possible, even if there are changes to their health. I was talking to my stubborn old dad this morning, and he reiterated that point to me.
A recent report from the Office of the Seniors Advocate of B.C. from 2015 confirms that up to 86% of B.C. seniors felt that with a combination of home support and some home adaptations, they could remain at home if their care needs increased. This same report also illustrated the fear that seniors are feeling about being forced away from the support of their communities into assisted living or residential care prematurely.
In Victoria, more than one in five people was aged 65 and over in 2016, considerably higher than the national average of 17%. Seniors occupy 50% of the BC Housing social housing units here and account for 40% of applicants on the wait-list for social housing. In the city of Victoria, 14% of senior-led households are renters, and over half of those households spend more than 30% of their monthly income on shelter costs. This means that these senior households are living in what CMHC would consider as core housing need.
In the James Bay neighbourhood here in the city of Victoria, renter households make up over two-thirds—approximately 70%—of the overall households in the area, and half of those are renter households that spend more than 30% of their income on shelter costs.
In addition to immediate needs, rental demand in the capital region as a whole is expected to increase significantly over the next two decades. This is according to the BC Non-Profit Housing Association's projections. Seniors aged 65 and older are the demographic that will experience the most significant increase in rental demand in this region over the next 20 years. There could be an increase of up to nearly 10,000 additional seniors' households seeking rental housing by 2036. That's a staggering number, and one we need to think seriously about.
Of course, we know that there is, even now, a significant rental housing shortage here, and with costs of running a household rising, this leads to increased pressure on seniors' households.
We are seeing an unprecedented demographic shift that requires a thoughtful, timely, and pragmatic response. I'm going to highlight one strategy among many that might address the growing need of seniors.
At the social planning council, we have been working with the Canadian Senior Cohousing network to explore co-housing as a model to support accessibility, affordability, and aging in place. For seniors with higher incomes and who have the ability to invest in new developments, co-housing is an emerging form of supporting accessibility, a certain level of affordability, and, importantly, aging in place. The model of co-housing in Canada is predominantly ownership-based, which makes it inaccessible for middle- to lower-income seniors. However, the model is impressive in that it takes into account all of the factors we think about when we think about supporting seniors aging in place.
Co-housing is a neighbourhood design that combines the independence of private homes—condo-sized units—with the advantages of shared amenities similar to co-operatives, and a village-style support system. The co-housing model provides safe physical surroundings and can be purpose-built to address the needs of residents with dementia, but there is also a focus on social care, or what is also referred to as co-care. It is this focus on co-care that can be replicated in other formats, such as purpose-built rental buildings or other types of residential communities, such as subsidized housing complexes or housing co-operatives.
Quite simply, the co-care model provides a template for organizing care and reducing caregiver fatigue because it is shared across a broader network of people who are neighbours. This model is exactly what we need to see in our communities: neighbours helping neighbours.
We all know the issue is very complex, especially for low-income seniors. There are ways to bring the principles of co-housing to more affordable developments, but seniors may need help in creating affordable co-housing projects.
I'm happy to discuss this and other models at your convenience. Thank you again for the opportunity to speak today.