Landlords chasing young professionals and students may be walking past one of the more dependable tenant groups in the market. Older renters are growing in number, tend to stay put and are poorly served by the housing stock on offer, according to Saif Derzi, a property trading expert at Landlord Resource.
His argument is that investors who reshape their properties around this cohort can lock in longer tenancies and lower running costs, at a time when churn and compliance are eating into margins elsewhere in the sector.
“Latest figures show that the number of older households renting is increasing, with nearly a fifth (18 per cent) of those aged 65 and older now living in private rented accommodation,” Derzi said. “This presents an opportunity for landlords to serve an underserved and growing segment of the market by offering rental options that are financially fair and accessible.”
Why older tenants end up renting
The routes into renting later in life are rarely chosen. Marriage breakdown can leave one or both partners unable to get back on the property ladder, and once renting, the practical barriers to moving again mount up: finding another suitable home, meeting upfront costs, and stretching a pension that has already been thinned by rent.
That leaves a tenant group with a strong incentive to stay, provided the landlord does not sell from under them. The direction of travel is well documented. The Pensions Policy Institute projects that more than one in three pensioner households could be renting by 2044, against just over one in five today.
For landlords, that stability has a cash value. “Older renters want a more permanent home, which can save landlords money on letting fees, inventory checks, and empty unrented months,” Derzi said. “Also, more mature tenants tend to treat properties with more care. This could mean you would spend significantly less money on repairs.”
The stock is not there
The obstacle is supply. Retired tenants gravitate towards single-storey homes, and the housebuilding industry has spent the past decade building almost none.
“Bungalows are often a sought-after and suitable property type for retired people due to the general health issues we all tend to get as we get older,” Derzi said. “However, the latest NHBC figures reveal that new-build bungalows have decreased by nearly two-fifths (38.4 per cent) since 2011. Ground-floor flats that are easily accessible to vital amenities such as GP surgeries, local transport, and shops are what is needed.”
The squeeze is visible among owner-occupiers too. The HomeOwners Alliance found that 1.2 million homeowners aged 55 and over have abandoned plans to move in two years, with a shortage of suitable homes stalling downsizing. Renters face the same wall.
The trade-offs landlords should price in
Derzi does not pretend the model is cost-free, and the drawbacks he lists are ones any investor should weigh before repositioning a portfolio.
“The cons of renting to older tenants can include the need for accessibility adaptations and additional maintenance, alongside greater financial and legal considerations,” he said. “Tenants on fixed incomes may have less flexibility when costs rise, while landlords may need to take extra care when managing arrears or rent increases.
“There can also be additional responsibilities around health or cognitive decline, property upkeep and, in some cases, more complex eviction or succession procedures.”
Fixed incomes cut both ways. A pensioner is a reliable payer at today’s rent and a constrained one when the landlord wants to raise it, so investors may have to trade slower rent growth for fewer voids.
What this means for investors
The practical entry point is modest. Rather than buying a bungalow outright in a market where they are scarce and priced accordingly, landlords can adapt what they already own, particularly ground-floor flats and houses close to a GP surgery, bus route and shops.
“Landlords looking to tap into the growing market of older renters should start by making properties more accessible and adaptable, while considering how to keep rents affordable for tenants on fixed incomes,” Derzi said.
“Simple improvements such as better lighting, safer fixtures and accessibility features can make properties more suitable, while having clear processes in place for maintenance, support and potential changes in tenants’ circumstances can help landlords manage the longer-term needs of this market.”
Set against the upgrades landlords typically make to lift rental income, better lighting, grab rails and level access are cheap. The return comes not from a higher rent but from a tenancy that runs for years rather than months, with fewer re-letting fees, inventory checks and empty weeks in between.
With a third of pensioner households projected to be renting within two decades, landlords who set up the right stock and processes now will have first call on the most durable demand in the market.
