Rodney Stevens
Clarence Valley residents are being asked for their feedback on Retirement Villages as the NSW Government works to reform the current laws which expire in September.
Retirement Villages typically have a variety of accommodation options – rooms, apartments, units, or homes, which can be rented or bought by residents aged over 55 who have retired from full time employment.
Options for care in retirement villages include self-contained, serviced or assisted living where residents are provided meals, cleaning and other services, and a mixture of self-contained and serviced, giving residents the flexibility to change if and when they need to.
Support services offered at some retirement villages include social groups, health and fitness classes, specialised medical staff and equipment.
The difference between retirement villages and the over-55 communities that are popping up across the Clarence Valley and all over Australia is that there is a greater emphasis on independence, with less scheduled activities but similar shared facilities including swimming pools, clubhouses, and sports courts.
Any residents considering purchasing in a retirement village or an over 55 community is strongly encouraged to understand the financial and legal implications of their decision, including the types of contracts available, the entry fee and any ongoing costs, plus any potential exit fees and conditions.
Retirement Villages in NSW are governed under the Retirement Villages Regulation 2017 – which supports the Retirement Villages Act 1999 – with the current regulation expiring on September 1, 2025.
As part of the reforms, the NSW Government is proposing the Retirement Villages Regulation 2025, which proposes to make significant changes to the asset management plan requirements for retirement villages, to improve transparency for residents and reduce unnecessary administrative work for owners and operators.
Proposed changes to the Retirement Villages Regulation include reducing the amount of information operators must record on the retirement villages asset register, requiring operators to prepare a 1-year capital maintenance report – instead of a 3-year report- as part of their annual budget process, and requiring retirement village operators to record the ‘remaining effective life’ of capital items instead of ‘effective life’.
As part of the NSW Government’s public consultation on the Retirement Villages Regulation, feedback is being sought.
You can have your say by uploading a written submission to NSW Fair Trading’s policy team or completing an online survey consisting of 9 topic areas which should take about 15 minutes to complete.
For more information, to lodge a submission, or to complete the online survey visit https://www.haveyoursay.nsw.gov.au/retirement-villages-regulation