Relocating or ageing in place? A story of housing modifications in rural, NZ

Abstract

As the New Zealand population grows older, there is a trend toward increasing proportions of older New Zealanders living in small towns or rurally (Statistics New Zealand, 2008). Older adults are moving to small towns or rural areas as they age to be closer to family (Burholt & Dobbs, 2012), or to enjoy the lifestyle (Provencher, Keating, Warburton, & Roos, 2014) or to reduce living costs. Others have lived in small town New Zealand or in rural areas for their entire life and are choosing to age at home (Fraser et al., 2005). Also there are a disproportionate number of Maori living in rural New Zealand with a high proportion of those over 60 years old living in rural and small-town areas (Rural Expert Advisory Group to the Ministry of Health, 2002).