RLC Executive Director Daniel Gannon said the "lack of vision is frankly contemptuous to the 4.2 million retirees around Australia and the 710,000 people looking to retire in the next five years."

"Governments need to get creative and expand their vision for older Australians and their ageing needs," he said.

Mr. Gannon noted that while there were some highlights from the budget season, such as cost of living relief for pensioners in Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria and Queensland, the ideas seemed to "start and stop" there.

"State governments tend to have a celebrated focus on first home buyers forgetting that if 'rightsizing' disincentives can be removed, hundreds of thousands of homes in the middle of the market could be freed up," he said.

Mr. Gannon argued that incentivising older Australians to 'rightsize' into homes better suited to their ageing needs could lead to better health outcomes, reduced interaction with hospitals and aged care facilities, and more homes re-entering housing markets for younger people.

"But at the moment, it's radio silence on age-friendly housing solutions," he said.

The RLC is calling on state governments to put in place minimum land allocations for retirement villages in greenfield and master-planned settings, including targets like those already in place for social and affordable housing.

Mr. Gannon highlighted that compared to people not living in a retirement village, residents are 41 per cent happier, 15 per cent more physically active, five times more socially active, twice as likely to catch up with family and friends, and experience reduced levels of loneliness and depression.