If private assisted living housing takes off here, will more developers bite?

Developers may be forced to cover high costs through premium senior housing

- Grace Leong Senior Correspondent

When Singapore's first private assisted living home, Perennial Living, opens in the first quarter of 2026, its take-up rate will be closely watched by other developers looking to get into this space, as well as by seniors hoping for a more wallet-friendly version.

The 200-apartment project in Parry Avenue comes with private lift access, sky terraces, a clubhouse with dining and lifestyle amenities, personal concierge services, and a rehabilitation, medical and wellness centre.

Costing between $8,900 and $17,000 a month, depending on room type and required care, Perennial Living is aimed at well-heeled seniors over the age of 65.

If the luxury project is well subscribed, more developers may pivot towards the fast-growing elderly demographic in Singapore.

But given the high costs of acquiring land, as well as high construction and labour costs, developers will likely end up building high-end senior living facilities to cover costs and profit margins. All these costs are then passed on to seniors.

This means that only a small and well-off segment of Singaporeans, permanent residents and foreigners will be able to afford premium eldercare services.

But can there be private assisted living facilities with all the bells and whistles - from apartments equipped with smart technology to meals crafted by in-house dieticians to dementia-focused traditional Chinese medicine therapies - at rates lower than what Perennial Living is charging?

For Mr Jonathan Denis-Jacob, a director at real estate consultancy Cistri, one possibility is for the Government to provide "subsidised land to developers with explicit land-use designation, objectives and parameters to fulfil affordability objectives".

This would lower development costs and deliver affordable private senior living housing, he said.