Development & Planning Authority president Neil Inder has been highlighting the ways that the planning service could be able to help parents, grandparents and grown-up children live together. He said he was a believer in the multiple benefits of multi-generational living.
For planning, this means supporting the construction of home extensions and outbuildings.
‘Housebuilding on a large scale can take a long time,’ he said.
‘Building an extension or a wing can be much quicker and a much more efficient use of space.
‘Services are already in place and families can work together on the finances – families can help families.’
Local estate agents have noticed an increasing demand for properties which can accommodate adult family members, but head of residential at Savills, Stuart Leslie, said he always warned such clients about the risks of building extensions.
‘We’re certainly seeing this more and more,’ he said.
‘I think there are situations where it’s an excellent idea.
‘A pool of resources is certainly helpful for a lot of people over here, and we definitely get more enquires for multi-generational living than we’ve had previously.
‘But I think there’s still challenges. The plan to support is super but, unfortunately, until we get a handle on the building costs in the island, to be ploughing money into a house that you may not be able to get back if you ever decided to sell, is a big risk.
‘You never know what’s going to happen in the long term with house prices.
‘They may explode or they may stay stagnant.
‘But the cost of building means that in most cases, it won’t be viable to build a wing, because it’ll never hold the same value as a separate house.’