Crunching the numbers: Over-65s spending almost all of pension on sky-high rent

Some pensioners are spending up to 95 percent of their superannuation on rent.

In the next instalment of RNZ's Crunching the Numbers series, Checkpoint spoke to some superannuitants about how they are forced to navigate sky-high rents and few accommodation options, instead of being able to settle into a comfortable retirement.

The issue is only expected to get worse, with the Retirement Commission estimating the number of over-65s who are renting could double by 2048, to more than 600,000.

A pensioner in Whanganui - who Checkpoint agreed not to name - pays $450 a week for her two-bedroom rental, with just $70 dollars left over from her pension.

She has to work part-time to cover her living costs.

"Power alone is $50 a week without any addition, on top of that... having things like insurance has become a luxury that doesn't feel very safe, either because I've got no insurance on my contents. It just feels like I'm walking backwards."

The woman's job enabled her to get by, but she felt for those over 65 who could not work.

"However, people shouldn't also be living on the bones of their bum. It feels unfair."

The woman is on the waiting list for a Masonic Lodge apartment - which at $360 a week is far cheaper than her current accommodation - but there is a five-year wait.

With her landlord planning to move into her property when they retired, she was worried what the future may hold.

"It makes me feel very insecure you know, I never imagined I'd get to this stage of life and feel so insecure in my world.

"It's quite frightening, really if I think about it too hard, then it becomes too overwhelming because I don't know where I'm gonna be living this time next year."

Yvonne, who was renting in Auckland, echoed this concern.

"The only thing is you never know if they're going to, you know, want to move in or move in family or sell it or anything."

She pays $495 a week for her one-bedroom apartment, leaving her with just $25 a week from her pension, although she also receives an MSD accommodation supplement of $110 a week.

When the winter energy payment ends in October, she will have $135 to get by, including paying for groceries and bills.

Yvonne has been on the pensioner housing waitlist for three years, and was worried about the growing population of over-65s who do not own their own home.

"I don't know how it's gonna work it seems like there aren't gonna be enough young people to take care of all the elderly people.

"I think it's going to cause a bit of stress all around for everybody, really."

'A good balance between company and solitude'

Registered charity and community housing provider Abbeyfield is trying to plug the housing gap for older renters.

Set up more than 30 years ago, it now has 14 properties around the country, with 160 rooms.

It is a flatting style of living designed to be affordable on the pension, with rent of $440 a week that also covers meals and bills.

Chief executive Ruth Seabright said they were at 98 percent occupancy.

"The demand for Abbeyfield houses outstrips our ability to supply at this point, so both in terms of the occupancy of the current houses and the development of new houses, what we really need is access to affordable funding."

Christabel Jackson, 79, has been living in an Abbeyfield house for almost three years.

She said having all-inclusive rent was life changing.

"We've had people come here who said they chose between rent and food."

Jackson said residents enjoyed the benefit of shared living.

"It's pretty close to when I was a student and we shared flats. I think for me it's a very good balance between company and solitude.

"The more I get to know people here, the more I enjoy them we have a good laugh and tell stories."

It costs $4 million to build an Abbeyfield house, through a mixture of community donations and government funding.

There are plans to build one house each year for the next decade, but with future government funding yet to be secured, it was difficult to get the ball rolling on new builds.

Seabright said initiatives like Abbeyfield needed to be ramped up if New Zealand was to meet the needs of its ageing population.

"Enabling independent living for longer and a healthy, affordable, socially supported environment I think that's key when you look at what's coming down the pipeline in terms of the population change that we're facing and the housing crisis."

Shortage of retirement accommodation and care beds

A new survey also shows New Zealand also risked a massive shortfall of retirement accommodation.

Real estate company JLL's survey showed Kiwis would need another 8400 retirement village units by 2033, if the country was going to keep up with demand.

Aged Care Association chief executive Tracey Martin told Checkpoint the shortfall was "very concerning".

"It's not the first time it's been mentioned, successive governments have had a long lead-in time, but right now we're pushed right up against the wall."

She said the country was also facing a shortage of 12,000 care beds by 2032.

"So we really need to sit down and work this out with some urgency."

Martin said the "myth" that older people all had houses and all had money had to go away.