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Wan LixinOpinion deputy editor of Shanghai Daily
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YANG Ming, a 56-year-old university teacher, is already planning for his retirement knowing it is very difficult to get a place in a good home for seniors.
His son has decided to live abroad. Yang doesn’t want to join him, nor does he want to live alone. “I need to find a senior care facility that will meet my needs and keep me connected with my social circle,” Yang said. “People deserve to have a quality lifestyle even if they are old.”
Yang recently visited the Sublime Senior Living complex in Minhang District’s Huacao Town, one of the new, more up-market retirement care centers appearing in Shanghai. He liked what he saw and said he is planning to sign a contract to reserve an apartment there.
Yang’s wife has retired. Yang said his wife will probably move into the complex earlier and they feared the apartments in the complex will be sold out upon its opening.
He’s not alone in looking ahead.
The number of Shanghai residents aged 60 or more grew 6.8 percent last year to about 4 million, or 29 percent of the permanent population. That figure is expected to surpass 6 million by 2025. With more young people unwilling or unable to care for elderly relatives at home, demand for senior care residences far exceeds supply.
A common complaint is people have to wait years to secure a spot in publicly run senior care homes, while newer facilities in suburban areas are more readily available but cost too much. The city has 114,907 beds in 660 registered senior care facilities, offering places for just 2.8 percent of the over-60 population.
Districts and county governments are trying to address the shortage. One three-star hotel in Hongkou District, for example, was converted into a senior care home after it went belly-up.
The days when public homes for the elderly invariably meant cramped quarters, no medical services and unprofessional staff are giving way to more modern care facilities that combine health care services with a comfortable lifestyle.
Sublime Senior Living, with a staff of 1,000, is one of them. It has 10 buildings and 650 apartments ranging in size from 43 to 150 square meters. The facility is set to open late next year.
It is being built on the first plot of land specifically zoned by the city for senior citizens facilities. Residents can choose leases of 10, 20 or 50 years. A 50-year lease on a 43-square-meter apartment costs 1.77 million yuan (US$285,483), or about 35,500 yuan a year. Each resident also is required to pay a monthly service fee of 7,000 yuan.
More than 100 people have already signed contracts to live at the complex. Most are higher income, better-educated seniors, some of whom have children living abroad.
The rights to the contracts can be transferred to children if a resident dies before the lease expires. Many groups of friends and siblings sign contracts together to ensure they will be neighbors in retirement.
The cost is high, but the amenities are many.
Each apartment is fitted with an infrared monitoring system that alerts staff if occupants don’t show movement for a certain period of time. The complex has a medical center, and apartments are designed for the convenience and safety of elderly people. There’s even a large garden area with small lake where residents can plant vegetables, take walks and fish.
The Yiheyuan Elderly Service Center in Zhujing Town in suburban Jinshan District is another high-end residential complex. Its French-style villas and spacious green grounds have proven popular even though the facility isn’t due to open until October.
The facility provides basic medical care, housekeeping services and 24-hour staffing. It also has a 10-hectare orchard, a running track, an outdoor dancing square, a supermarket and small cinema.
According to Zhou Baoyun, chairman of the board at Yiheyuan, about 60 percent of people booking the apartments are locals from Jinshan and most are in their 70s.
Each resident is required to pay an 80,000 yuan deposit and then 5,000 yuan to 5,500 yuan per month.
“The parents of the first generation born under China's one-child policy are now joining the ranks of seniors, and many of their children aren’t able to take care of them,” Zhou said. “The idea of getting parents to move into comfortable elderly communities appeals to them.”
Zhang Fan, director of the social welfare department of the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau, said the city is encouraging the expansion of modern retirement facilities.
“There is a need for higher-end senior care homes to cater to diversified demand as the elderly pursue quality life as they age,” said Zhang.
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