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To Move or Not to Move?: Exploring future housing plan of ageing communities in Kuala Lumpur Ainoriza Mohd Aini *

Wan Nor Azriyati Wan Abd Aziz** Noor Rosly Hanif***

Abstract The growing number of elderly is poised to become a major issue in developing countries. Malaysia is one of the countries where the population is ageing and is forecasted to become an aged nation by 2030. terms of housing for the ageing community.

This will create greater challenges in

As such, a study on unique housing and accommodation that caters to the

growing ageing or elderly community is pertinent and indeed necessary.

This paper examines the aspirations of the older

adults in Kuala Lumpur in term of their current homes satisfaction and their future housing plans including the reflection of ageing in place. Malaysia.

A face-to-face survey was conducted in a sample of respondents aged 40 and above in Kuala Lumpur,

The findings revealed that majority of the respondents are satisfied with their current house and the

neighbourhood.

Thus, they are not planning to move in the future due to the sense of attachment and feelings of familiarity

in their current homes and the neighbourhood.

The paper concludes by suggesting that ageing in place should be taken

account in formulating policies and measures related to elderly and quality housing at various levels in Malaysia. Keywords : Housing, Ageing population, Elderly, Age-in-place, Kuala Lumpur

I. Introduction 1. Background and Aims of the Study Malaysia, similar to many other countries, is projected to experienced growth in their elderly population. Malaysia is one of the countries where the population is ageing and is forecasted to become an aged nation by 2030. The population of elderly in Malaysia has grown from 0.5 million in 1970’s to almost 2.3 million in 2010, whereas the population of elderly at that time are just 8% from total population. It is expected that Malaysia will become ageing nation by year 2030 and during that period, the population of elderly are 15% from total population (Hamid & Tyng, 2013). Elderly in Malaysia are living longer today due to improved living condition. Most of them are better in terms of education and wealth.

* Lecturer, Department of Estate Management, Faculty of Built Environment, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur ** & *** Associate Professor, Department of Estate Management, Faculty of Built Environment, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur

Traditionally, elderly in Malaysia has been the responsibility of their children. They lived with either an unmarried child or married children in an extended family system. However, rapid development has transformed the mainly rural agricultural society to an increasingly urbanised industrial society. The social characteristics of people in Malaysia are changing as a result of urbanisation and modernisation of the population, for example, the changing role of women and their participation in the labour force, delay in marriage, smaller family size, migration of the younger generation to urban areas with more jobs and education opportunities (Aminah, 1996; Arpita, 2000; Hew, 2007; Sim, 2002). These ageing Malaysian who lives in the urban area such as Greater Klang Valley and financially stable, they will create demand for separate housing trend during their retirement. The changes in an economic development, migration and changes in family structure have also weakened family support and care for older persons (Ng et al., 2012). Little is known about the preference of independent living arrangement in later life. The needs and expectations of older persons in Malaysia have also change, especially those living in the urban setting. Given this background, a study on unique housing and accommodation that caters to the growing ageing or elderly community is pertinent and

Contact Author: Ainoriza Mohd Aini, Lecturer, Faculty of Built Environment, University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Tel: 603 79675216 Fax: 603 79675713 e-mail: [email protected] The Asia Pacific Network for Housing Research (APNHR) Conference, Korea April 9th – 12th 2015

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indeed necessary. As such it is the aim of this paper to examine the aspirations of the older adults in the Greater Kuala Lumpur (Greater KL) in term of their current homes satisfaction and their future housing plans. The Greater KL is also ideal for this research because of the highest number of population of ageing group. The term Greater KL was coined by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak as one of twelve National Key Economic Areas to spur the country’s economy growth in the Economic Transformation Program (PEMANDU, 2010).

As such, policy makers in Asia have been focusing on maintaining this cultural traditions. Malaysia has both cultural and religious root which require their children to payback their parent for what they sacrificed. This action was practice by Malay Muslim and also Indonesian as the filial duty of children. It is also equal to with what Confucianism thought and it follow by majority of Chinese in Malaysia. These responsibilities are bided together with the family institutions (Doling & Omar, 2012). Malaysia will have problems where there is a failure of family support in the future. Most of family find it is increasingly difficult to take care of older people (Zainab et al., 2012) This result emphasize that family structure for Asian is not as strong as in the past anymore. In the past, Malaysia the policies have been emphasising on the sharing responsibility between the government, private sectors, non-government organisations, community and the older people to meet their needs. There have been a number of national policies put in place or older people in Malaysia; National Social Welfare Policy (1990) – This policy addressed the need for the care of older persons by families and communities. 1. National Policy for the Elderly (1995) –Creating a

2. Ageing Phenomenon in Malaysia There is an increasing interest in the definition of ageing in a social and cultural context around the globe. Kalk, Baat and Meeuwissen (1992), defined ageing as a natural biological process, a pathological process, a psychosocial or a socioeconomic process. Most of the countries adopted the age 60 and 65 years as the beginning of old age as the definition of ageing varies across countries, culture and time (Sen, 1994). It is in line with the definition by World Health Organisation (1989), an ageing population considers as the elderly population of 65 years and above (65+ years) of a country reaches 7.0% of its total population. Malaysia has adopted the aged of 60 years and above based on the definition made at the World Assembly on Aging in Vienna, 1982.

society of elderly people who are contented and possess a

Table 1. Summary of Population Statistics, Malaysia Ages

2010

2015

2020

2025

2030

2035

2040

0-14 years (%)

27.4

25.4

24.0

23.4

22.5

21.1

19.6

15-64 years (%)

67.6

68.8

69.2

68.6

68.2

68.5

69.0

65 years and over (%)

5.0

5.8

6.6

8.0

9.3

10.4

11.4

Median Age

26.3

28.2

29.9

31.5

33.0

34.5

36.0

28,588.6

30,485.2

32,441.2

34,294.2

35,965.7

37,389.5

38,557.9

Total population

Malaysia is a multi-ethnic and multi religious country in Southeast Asia. It consists of Peninsular Malaysia and East Malaysia which divided by the South China Sea. By the year of 2015, the Department of Statistic Malaysia projected that the total population of Malaysia is approximately 30 million and going towards the ageing society. Over the next 25 years, the population of the age group 0-14 years will be constantly decreasing and the population of the age group of 15-64 years will be expected to increase, thus this trend will contribute to the increment of the median age from 26.3 to 36.0 years. Based on the United Nations, Malaysia will be considered an ageing population in the year 2021 as the population aged 65 and over reach 7.1 per cent. In most Asian countries, it is part of cultural norms for co-residing with an older relative and providing aged care. APNHR April 2015

high sense of worth and dignity, by optimising their selfpotential and ensuring that they enjoy every opportunity as well as care and protection from members of their family, society and nation. 3. Current housing options for the elderly Apart from staying in their current family homes, there are ranges of institutional and residential care options to meet the needs of the older community in Malaysia. This is delivered by three parties: the government, in the provision of residential homes and long term care facilities for people on low incomes; the private sector, motivated by profit in which the ability to pay applies; and non-governmental organisations that respond to the needs of older people as well as government initiatives. One option is institutional care which often refers to shelter provided in old people’s

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homes (for example Rumah Seri Kenangan) of which there are 11 (two in East Malaysia) administered by the federal government. These homes offer accommodation, counselling and guidance, occupational rehabilitation, devotional facilities, recreational activities and medical treatment for older people. These elderly care institutions are often found in urban areas or near medical facilities. Some are managed by the government while others are run by NGOs or other private charitable organisations. The non-profit government organisations in Malaysia also have put in some effort in the issue of elderly housing in the country. Such effort is displayed in residential homes such as Rumah Sejahtera. This elderly residential home is administered by MPKSM and supervised by the Social Welfare Department which also provides the funds to run this facility. In reality, however these homes can be considered as LTC facilities for people whose health status deteriorates during their stay but who are reluctant to be relocated (Fu & Hughes, 2009). Congregate housing such as retirement villages and retirement community homes are still a novel idea in Malaysia. But as more of these retirement villages sprout in neighbouring countries such as Singapore and Australia to accommodate the modern ageing population of their country, the idea of elders living independently in a facility that is both healthcare and socially equipped to keep them healthy and active in their old age began to show its appeal and marketability. In addition to the typical retirement village facilities, the latest concept of retirement village in Malaysia embeds religious activities also known as pondok or madrasah (Zainab et al., 2012). Pondok system or funduk is define as inn or hotel which also described as “a centrally located building, usually teacher houses surrounded by small house and dwelling (Rosnani. et al., 2011). It has become an increasingly popular alternative choices for muslim ageing population intending to gain continuous religious knowledge. Ageing in place is considered as a norm to the Malaysian elderly who are residing in rural areas due to the comforts of the home they have lived for most of their life. On the other hand, some older members of urban population who lives and works in the city, they tends to remain in their jobs for as long as they are able to, this will motivate them to stay active in their old age and able to live independently. Few studies have examined the future housing plan of Malaysian elderly in particular for those who are living in urban setting. As such, the paper will fill the gap by investigating the housing aspirations of urban elderly in Greater KL.

4. Research Methodology The empirical work involved face-to-face survey to learn more about their retirement housing interests of those approaching their retirement age. Respondents were selected by the random sampling among males and females 40 years of age and older residing in the Greater Kuala Lumpur area. The target sample selected is people who were elderly1 at the time of the study or who would become elderly within the next 20 years as suggested in other housing preference studies (See for example (Costa-Font, Elvira, & Mascarilla-Miro, 2009 and Ngee Ann Polytechnic, 2011). In order to maintain consistency of the data gathering, the research officers and real estate undergraduate students were selected as interviewer. This is essential as surveying this population group requires careful methodological consideration. After being trained in the administration of the survey, interviewers were sent out to visit respondents and explain the purpose and outlines of this study. The questionnaire instrument was designed to gathers socioeconomic information about the respondents as well as questions about their future plan. 5. Results and analysis Empirical work for this study involved face to face interviews with a total of 768 respondents residing in Greater Kuala Lumpur. Interviews were conducted in seven (7) local authorities’ area in the Greater Kuala Lumpur. The locations or local authorities involved in this survey consisted of Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL), Majlis Perbandaran Ampang Jaya (MPAJ), Majlis Perbandaran Kajang (MPKj), Perbadanan Putrajaya, Majlis Bandaraya Subang Jaya (MBSJ), Majlis Bandaraya Shah Alam (MBSA) and Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya (MBPJ). The distribution of 768 questionnaires by local authorities is shown in Figure 1.

Fig 1 Survey area

1

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Malaysia defined elderly person as age 60 years and above

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years. Table 1 Socio-Demographic Characteristics of survey respondents Characteristics Gender: Female Male Age: 40-49 50-59 60-69 70 or above Ethnicity: Malay Chinese Indian Others Marital Status: Married Not Married Divorced/Widowed Others Education: Primary/Secondary Tertiary Level Employment Employed in Public Sector Employed in Private Sector Retired Unemployed Self-employed

% of respondents (n=768) 46.2 53.8 33.0 49.2 14.9 2.9 61.7 28.4 8.1 1.8 83.1 5.5 11.4

40.5 59.5 35 23.7 16.7 6.3 18.4

Socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents are shown in Table 2. Among the 768 respondents surveyed, male respondents (53.8%) slightly outnumbered females (46.2%). All respondents are Malaysian residing in the sampling area. Majority of the respondents (61.7%) are predominantly Malays, followed by Chinese and Indian. Majority of them are Muslim (62.5%), followed by Buddhists (15.8%) and Christians (11.3%). From the table, it can be seen that those in the age group of 50-54 years old is the highest percentage of respondents. About 18.9% of the total respondents have passed their compulsory retirement age, which is 60 years old. Majority of them are married (83.1%) about 8.1% are widowed and 4.4% of them are single. More than half of the respondents (59.5%) had tertiary level qualification (i.e. degree/diploma/master/PhD) whilst 31.0% of the respondents completed secondary level education. More than a quarter (35%) of the respondents are working in the government sector, followed by 23.7% are working in the private sector. About 18.4% are currently self-employed. About 16.7% of the respondents have retired with half of the retirees have retired for less than 10 APNHR April 2015

Almost a quarter of the respondents (24.5%) have household income of more than RM10,000. Second highest ranked is income’s range between RM3,000-RM5,000 (20.8%), third ranked is RM7,001-RM10,000 (18.1%), forth ranked is below RM3,000 (18%), fifth ranked is RM5,001-RM7,000 (15.8%) and lastly 2.9% of respondents with no fixed income. Table 3 further revealed that majority of respondents (68.69%) living in Kuala Lumpur are either sole owners or co-owners of their current accommodation. This is consistent with the notion of Malaysia as a homeowner’s democracy country. About 13.28% of the respondents revealed that they are living in accommodation owned by their spouse or partner. About 17.56% of the remaining respondents do not own the place they are currently residing. This includes 8.85% who are renting and 2.47% living in quarters provided by their employers. Table 3. Current housing situation of survey respondents % of Characteristics respondents (n=768) Ownership Status Own/Co-Own 69.14 Renting 8.85 Others 21.99 Duration in current house 20 years 23 Type of house: Terrace (Single / Double 55.86 Storey) Semi-Detached (Single / 3.38 Double Storey) Detached / Bungalow 11.46 Apartment / Condominium 14.71 Flat (Low-Cost) 9.11 Others 5.46

Almost half (42.4%) of the respondents have lived in their current house between 11-20 years followed by 3-10 years (29.9%), more than 20 years (23%) and a small percentage (4.6%) below than 3 years. Landed properties are popular options as almost half (42.32%) of the total respondents live in double storey terrace house while 13.54% live in single storey terrace house. Only one quarter of the respondents live in vertical residences (Flat: 9.11%, Apartment: 7.42%, Condominium: 7.29%).

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The study also examined the satisfaction level towards the aspects of safety and size of their current homes. The 5 point Likert scales were used for this purpose. When asked about their perceptions towards physical safety aspects of their current home, the vast majority agree that each area of their current home is safe for them to live. This is shown in Figure 2 below.

70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

STRONGLY DISAGREE (%)

DISAGREE (%)

NEUTRAL (%)

AGREE (%)

STRONGLY AGREE (%)

The study also asked the respondents about the needs of future home renovation. The result indicated that they feel neutral towards all the areas except for the bathroom and kitchen. About one third (32.9%) of the respondents require renovation on their bathroom and 29.2% require renovation on their kitchen area. This includes changing the bathroom and kitchen tiles to non-slippery tiles to avoid falling incidents. Having examined the respondents’ profile and current housing satisfaction, we now examine the moving desires in the future. Vast majority of the respondents indicated they want to be close to their children indicating strong family values among Malaysian. Another factor which is considered important is staying near good public transportation system and staying close to their friends and relatives. The respondents were asked about their housing plan in the future, whether they want to ‘age-in-place’ or move to a new house. Majority of the respondents preferred to remain in the same residence in the future or when they retire (65.89%) while 7.94% undecided and 4.04% have not thought about their future housing plan (Figure 4).

Fig 2 Respondents’ Perception towards Safety Aspect of Current Home

Undecided 8%

In respect of adequateness of size in respondents’ current home, more than half of the respondents agreed the existing size of compound (51.5%), entrance (57.4%), living area (54.3%), dining area (54.8%), staircase (57.5%), passageway (54.6%), bedroom (52.3%), bathroom (51.7%) and kitchen (52.0%) are adequate for them with mean score above 3.00.

No 66%

Yes

No

Undecided

Yes 22%

Have not thought about it 4%

Have not thought about it

Fig 4 To move or not to move? 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

STRONGLY DISAGREE (%) NEUTRAL (%) STRONGLY AGREE (%)

DISAGREE (%) AGREE (%)

Fig 3 Respondents’ Perception towards Requirement of Home Improvement

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It is interesting to note that among 22.14% of the respondents who choose to move out in the near future were predominantly (72.7%) planning to purchase a new house. (See Figure 5). Other reasons to relocate include moving with relatives (6.4%), renting a house (3.2%), move to retirement village (0.9%), move to madrasah or religious retirement village (0.9%). 11.8% of the respondents chose others which include moving into an elderly care homes. The future home preferences of these respondents are landed property. They expressed interest to purchase either a double storey terrace house, single storey terrace house (18.2%) or semi-detached houses. Respondents who plan to

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move out wish to inherit their current home to their children (35.1%). Other plans include to rent it out (30.3%), sell the house (17.6%), others (16%) and very few (1.1%) intend to give out to charity/waqaf.

Buying new home

3% 6%

5%

1%

12%

Moving with Relatives Renting Retirement Village

73%

Madrasah Others

Fig 5 Moving out plans in the future

Further analysis by age group revealed that those aged 40-54 are more likely to move out from their current residence. This is the duration when they will plan to move to a new accommodation that they will settle down for the rest of their life. The older they are the less likely they want to move. Those who have no illness are more likely to move and purchase a new house. Those who want to move were not happy with the safety and security level of their current residence and neighbourhood, traffic volume and noise level and vandalism level. Couples without children are likely to move out of their current residence in the near future. 6. Conclusion Population ageing is poised to become a major issue in developing countries as well as Malaysia. As Malaysia progresses in becoming a developed nation by 2020, population ageing is inevitable and will create greater challenges in terms of housing for the ageing community. The paper gave some insight to what the kind of living arrangement the older adults of Malaysian living in urban areas seeking in their later life and contributes to what little is known in the Malaysian context. The paper showed that majority of urban Malaysian are happy with their current accommodation and had not considered to move to a new accommodation or location in the future. They are satisfied with their current home and neighbourhood environment. Ageing in place is the preferred option because of the psychological benefit of remaining in the same, familiar and less uncertain environment. They also showed strong preferences for independent living with their children close by and other amenities too echoing the findings by earlier research by Yusnani (2006). Further investigations of APNHR April 2015

respondents who had considered moving in the future revealed that they are planning to purchase a new house rather than moving in with their relatives or relocating to a retirement village. Developing a better understanding of the future living plan of urban Malaysian elderly and the housing characteristics that they look for will allow relevant parties including the government and private developers to better tailor elderly housing requirements in the future. The findings of this study should be interpreted in the context of several limitations. The samples were restricted to Greater Kuala Lumpur residents only which have different socio-economic characteristics compared to other cities in Malaysia. As such, further research needs to explore housing plan in a broader population and also address cultural differences of elderly in other states or cities. It is also important to highlight that indicating one has expressed future plan of not moving or ageing in place, does not equate to actual plan in the future.

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11. Sim, O. F. (2002). Ageing in Malaysia; A review of National Policies and Programmes. In D. R. Philips, & A. C. Chan, Ageing and Long-term Care: National Policies in the Asia-Pacific (pp. 107-149). Singapore: Institute of South Asian Studies. 12. Yusnani, Mohd Yusof. Accommodating the Malaysian elderly: the cultural precursors. Ageing International 31.3 (2006): 185-202. 13. Zainab, I., Wan-Ibrahim, W. A., Mahmud., Z., Hamjah., S. H., Jemain., R., Baharuddin., E., .Kusrin., Z. M. (2012). An Alternative Living Arrangement for Older Malaysian. Advances in Natural Applied Sciences, 6(8), 1568-1572.

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