In March this year, Bjørn Olsen backed out of his farm for the very last time. Then he and his wife Anne Torunn Berge had lived in the detached house on Gulset in Skien for 35 years. It held for the couple in their 60s. What was originally his wife’s idea of a simpler everyday life quickly became a reality. – We are not getting any younger. We had a house that was too big for two pieces, and there was a lot of maintenance. We were between extensive renovation or a new apartment, the two say. Anne Torunn Berge and Bjørn Olsen built the house on Gulset in Skien in 1987. Photo: Joakim Maylove / Inbovi AS – Die while they wait The couple from Skien are out early to move into an apartment compared to others. In Porsgrunn, Bamble and Borgestad boligbyggelag (PBBL) they see that buyers are getting older and older. – We have projects where the average age is 74 years for those who move in. We experience in the projects that the buyers die along the way because they have waited too long, says marketing manager Lars Christensen. – This is a big life change for many. Isn’t it a good idea to think twice? – Yes, but this is not just about moving. You also clean up a whole life, so that your children do not have to. – Should do their children a favor Christensen has the impression that many older people say that they want to put away maintenance, but then it ends up that children and grandchildren have to step in. – They are bothered with both lawn mowing, painting and other maintenance. I think the elderly should do their children a favor and take the step of moving much faster, he says. – It’s easy to suspect that you are saying this to sell more? – Yes of course. But we sell well from before. Lars Christensen in the local housing construction team in Telemark believes the heirs are bothered when the elderly do not want to move into an apartment. Photo: PPBL Fewer of the oldest people move Statistics Norway’s Statistics Norway (SSB)’s overview shows that in 2011 there were just over 5,300 people in the age group 85-89 who moved to Norway. Ten years later, the number had dropped to 3,350, ie two thousand fewer registered relocations in the same age group. Statistics Norway has an overview of all registered relocations in Norway between 2005 and 2021. It is also divided into age groups, and shows clear trends: Those over 80 have relocated less and less, especially the very oldest. Those in the 70s have had fairly stable mobility. The youngest elderly (under 70 years) have moved more and more during the period. What would you like for your parents? I would let them live in their house as long as they wanted I had encouraged them to move to a smaller place Show result Problematic all over the country Lars Christensen in PBBL receives support from Eiendom Norge centrally. – This is a problem that we have all over the country, in slightly different ways, says CEO Henning Lauridsen. He points out that there are many elderly people living in the rural areas, but that there are few adapted apartments or homes they can move into. In the cities there are many apartments, but few of them have lifts and good facilities. If they have it first, they are very expensive. – An important thing in the future will be to increase the proportion of apartments that are suitable for the elderly. If we get it, more elderly people will move, says Lauridsen. – New and strange situation The Berge Olsen couple are proud when they show off their brand new apartment just outside the center of Skien. The couple now live on the fourth floor of this apartment building at Falkum in Skien. Photo: Grete Ingebjørg Berge / news Nevertheless, there has been a process. – I have missed the house occasionally, but it is more convenient now. It’s a new and strange situation, but it’s getting better and better. We do not regret it, says Bjørn Olsen. The daughter Maria (18) was not included in the discussion about moving, but she is happy that it happened. – It’s a little relief. When they disappear, it is much less for my brother and me to clean up. The Berge Olsen family has what they need on 90 square meters, including the porch. Photo: Grete Ingebjørg Berge / news Believes Norway has a long way to go Eva Lise Rosenvold (76) is the leader of the Skien pensioners’ team and a member of the Vestfold and Telemark senior councils. She herself moved from a large house to a smaller house twelve years ago. – The elderly must be safe where they live and there we have a long way to go. We in the pensioners’ team are particularly concerned with welfare technology. The municipalities must become better at adapting to the individual’s needs. Rosenvold says she agrees that the elderly live in detached houses for too long. – The elderly must realize that large, old homes are inappropriate. In the retirement team, we say that people should start planning for this when they turn 55 years old. Hi! Do you have similar issues we should write about? Then feel free to contact me.
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– Elderly people wait far too long to move from detached house to apartment – news Vestfold and Telemark – Local news, TV and radio
