Elderly people are not to blame

I think there are still quite a few elderly people living in reasonably sized houses. A number of municipalities have recently pointed the finger at these elderly people, claiming that they are to blame for the crisis in the housing market. At least, 55% of the municipalities cite the low flow of older people as the main cause of the crisis in the housing market. This is evident from a survey by the NOS and regional broadcasters. Really unfair, especially when you consider that for years the government has been propagating that the elderly should live independently at home for as long as possible. This is succeeding, especially now that seniors are staying fit and sporty for longer. After all, the elderly today are staying younger and younger. Many go to gyms or they walk, play tennis, cycle, play golf and participate fanatically in Nederland in Beweging (The Netherlands in Motion). And yes, they often live in a house that is actually a bit too big, but in many cases they live there cheaply because the mortgage has been (largely) paid off. Moreover, there is plenty of room for sleepovers and preserving memories. They feel at home in the neighborhood or village community and that also contributes to their well-being.

Yet the elderly are quite willing to move if there were a decent and affordable alternative. I know quite a few examples of people in their seventies and eighties who are perfectly at home again in a new environment, sometimes closer to their children, in a new, modern house or apartment. The tiny ‘home for the elderly’ is of course a thing of the past and the ‘home for the elderly’ is also a thing of the past. But the offer must be there of course and affordable in the consideration for people who now enjoy low housing costs.

The biggest problem in the housing market is that there is too little housing. It is striking that the municipalities point a lot to others in the answers to the survey: the elderly are not moving on, the housing corporations have too little money, there is a lack of direction from the state, wealthy sellers are driving up prices, etc. In addition, 24% say: ‘there is a shortage of building land’. You might say that they can do something about this themselves. But the municipalities do not like to point the finger of blame at themselves. Yes, they still say that they have too few powers and that the province has too much influence. I think that municipalities could be bolder and more courageous to realize new buildings in a wide variety more quickly. Maybe that wasn’t listed as a possibility to check off in that survey. But the elderly certainly don’t deserve to be scapegoated.