FACTORS AFFECTING THE SUCCESS OF RETIREMENT VILLAGES IN SINGAPORE

Abstract

Elderly and future elderly today have higher educational qualifications, thereby earning higher wages that enable them to lead a better lifestyle in their retirement years. This change in socioeconomic status among Singaporean elderly would mean more complicated housing needs and higher demand for quality retirement housing. Using examples from foreign countries, this study examines retirement village as a potential senior housing option in Singapore. The objectives of this study include identifying the important features of a retirement village in Singapore from a consumer’s perspectives and to determine the level of acceptance of retirement village in Singapore. This study also aims to find out why some of the elderly reject the idea of moving into a retirement village. A quantitative approach was adopted in this study where data was collected through survey questionnaires involving 314 respondents. Subsequently, survey results were analysed using descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA and binary logistic regression. The results from this study have shown that design, facilities, marketing, location and accessibility, supporting services, and financing are important features of retirement villages. In general, 74.8% of the respondents gave a positive response when asked if they would consider moving into a retirement village. The remaining 25.2% of the respondents who rejected the idea stated desire to live with children, new development in Singapore, high cost, and other retirement plans as the few main reasons. The findings of this study provide useful contributions towards research on senior housing option and present retirement village as a new concept to Singapore. At the same time, this study can serve as a useful guideline for potential developers who may be interested to undertake such development in future.