According to the latest Procore/Property Council Survey, confidence in retirement construction activity has fallen to its lowest level since December 2022, with capital growth expectations also declining in the September quarter.

RLC Executive Director Daniel Gannon said: "We know that 67 per cent of retirement village development applications take more than 365 days to complete assessment, while 23 per cent take more than 730 days."

Gannon added: "This is alarming and unacceptable, with governments crying out for more housing supply on one hand, while seemingly holding it back at the same time."

Despite the downturn, the survey reveals that the retirement living industry maintains the strongest sentiment for construction activity compared to other sectors, surpassing residential, office, industrial and retail combined.

The RLC highlighted the potential benefits of retirement villages, noting that residents are 20 per cent less likely to require hospitalisation after nine months of living in these communities, leading to 14,000 avoided annual hospitalisations across Australia.

Gannon stated: "As a consequence, these communities are minimising the interactions older Australians have with GPs and hospitals, while importantly delaying entry into taxpayer funded aged care and saving the government $945 million annually as a result."

To improve planning systems, the RLC recommends:

1. Establishing minimum land allocations for retirement communities in under-supplied areas
2. Offering zoning or development bonuses to incentivise retirement village development
3. Introducing targets for age-friendly developments in strategic regional and metropolitan plans
4. Collaboration between planning authorities and industry to identify high-need locations and ageing hot spots

The RLC's call for action comes as Australia faces a projected 85 per cent increase in the number of people over 75 by 2040, emphasizing the need for more age-friendly housing options.