This month’s budged from Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan offered a pilot program to enable seniors to downsize their homes and invest the returns without affecting their pensions.

The $112 million trial that would begin July 2014 will allow seniors who have owned their own home for 25 years or more to invest surplus funds, up to $200,000, without them being means tested against the ension.

The so-called Grey to Gold plan also extended the Broadband for Seniors program by nearly $10m with a further $4.6 million going to the Andrew Fisher Applied Policy Institute for Ageing.

Mr Swan said that the $127 million package would "harness the wisdom of our senior Australians".