LaingBuisson has published the third edition of their Later Living UK Market Report.

The latest analysis from LaingBuisson shows new build value in the UK Later Living housing market in 2024 was worth an estimated £2.2 billion. It has grown since last year, but growth is slow with an average of less than 7,000 new later living homes delivered each year over the last three years.

Significant cost pressures and new regulatory requirements are increasing the expense of bringing forward new schemes, possibly partially explaining the slow growth in building development. These pressures don’t just affect the builds but also affect the service costs of running schemes post build.

Operators are adapting by refining designs, seeking efficiencies, and exploring new financial models to ensure later living housing remains both viable for providers and affordable for residents.

The recent merger of Audley and Elysian is the biggest news we have seen for quite some time. They will benefit from the increased scale of the merged operations and facilitate investment. Audley have been leading the way in establishing the value of deferred management fees through sales to pension type investors; this is vital to instilling investor confidence in a key part of the value chain.

Investor appetite for rental options is rising; operators report that rental developments are delivering faster take-up rates than for-sale schemes, showing a marked shift in consumer preference. Purpose-built rental schemes provide people the opportunity to release housing equity while avoiding potentially lengthy resale risk.

The government’s proposals to phase out leasehold and expand commonholds are expected to have implications for later living housing. Operators note that schemes with extensive communal facilities require tenure models that provide clarity for residents while ensuring long-term management is viable. Discussions are ongoing about how potential alternatives such as Retirement Occupancy Contracts—might meet these needs while maintaining strong consumer protections.

About report author, Steve Ecker:

Steve is an associate consultant with LaingBuisson and is the author of our Retirement Housing UK Market Report. He owns and operates the specialist retirement housing and development consultancy Secker Taylor Associates, advising growing organisations across the property and construction sector through Non-Executive Director roles, trusted advisors and executive mentoring. It also advises on retirement development, whether at tactical level to improve designs and viability, or sales rates through to how to structure and deliver development process and strategic business reviews.

Steve was first involved with the retirement housing sector in 1989 as an auditor with Ernst & Young and has seen first-hand the journey the sector has been on. He joined McCarthy & Stone in 1993 and for over nearly 25 years was involved in all aspects of successfully delivering retirement housing of all types. For 13 years Steve was Managing Director in the north/north east of England has been involved in the delivery of 3,000 retirement apartments.

Steve is also a Non-Executive Director at Karbon Homes, York Housing Association, Johnnie Johnson Housing, Ashfield Homes, Rail Diary Limited and Tang Hall Smart CIC. He has Chartered Accountancy qualifications and an MBA from The Open University.

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