(Yicai Global) Oct. 15 -- An increasing number of senior citizens in China choose not to live with their offspring, driving a shift to an upgraded institutional care market, according to a survey done by a real estate institute.

Retirement homes will become mainstream in China in the future but the related hardware and software need further development, Beike Research Institute wrote in a report published yesterday during the Double Ninth Festival when people in China traditionally show their respect to the elderly.

China is aging rapidly. The number of those aged above 65 exceeded 190 million in the country, accounting for 13.5 percent of the population, per the 2020 national census. And the figures are about to spike. After 1962, China had a 10-year peak of new births, resulting in a large number of people about to retire in the next few years.

The widening sector could use a revamp. Nearly 60 percent of survey participants said China's retirement homes cannot satisfy their demand for outdoor activities. Almost half of them said that their houses lack the equipment to ensure barrier-free access, including handrails, anti-slip tape on the floor, and emergency call devices.

Nearly 66 percent of elderly people choose to live alone or with their spouses, according to the report. Less than 27 percent of them live with their sons and daughters. The remainder, less than 10 percent, live in nursing homes or with other relatives.

Old age doesn't rule out living alone. Among those aged above 80, the share of those living independently is 48 percent.

Seniors who want to live alone do it because they think they are in good health and enjoy their freedom, according to the report. That is partly a consequence of residents' increasing economic strength, which empowers people to pursue high-quality lifestyles, it added.

Editor: Dou Shicong, Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi