One in Three Pensioner Households Could Be Renting by 2044 — What It Means for Landlords
The Negotiator · Marc Shoffman · 13 July 2026
TL;DR
New research from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) and the Pensions Policy Institute warns that nearly two million more people in the UK are expected to retire without owning their home. By 2044, one in three pensioner households could be private renters — a more than tripling of current numbers. The financial strain is stark: privately renting a two-bedroom home throughout retirement costs between £200,000 and £400,000, yet the average defined contribution pension pot sits at just £154,000 (£105,000 for women). That gap means rental costs could consume an entire lifetime of private savings, leaving retirees dependent on the state pension for all other living expenses. The ABI is calling for a fundamental rethink of what adequate retirement provision looks like for a generation unlikely to own property outright.
Our take
While this research is UK-focused, the underlying trend carries a clear warning for the South African rental market — and landlords, agents, and policymakers here would do well to pay attention. South Africa already has a large population of older renters, many of whom rely on the SASSA older persons grant (currently R2,180 per month) as their primary income. That figure bears no resemblance to market-related rents in Cape Town, Johannesburg, or even smaller metros. For SA landlords, an ageing tenant base raises practical questions: affordability screening becomes more complex when income is fixed and pension savings are modest or non-existent; lease renewals carry greater sensitivity around security of tenure; and property maintenance expectations from older tenants tend to be higher. The Rental Housing Act already provides protections against unfair eviction, but there is no specific framework for elderly tenants facing rent escalations they cannot absorb. Agents should be proactively advising landlord clients to consider longer lease terms and modest annual escalations when dealing with retired tenants — it reduces vacancy risk and builds stable, low-turnover income. The broader lesson: home ownership as a retirement strategy is weakening globally, and SA's rental sector needs to plan for it.
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