The Melbourne over 55s land lease operator is the only leading operator to use a Deferred Management Fee (DMF). 

Lifestyle Communities claim it requires a DMF to ensure that it has funds to refurbish and maintain community facilities over future decades - its version of a sinking fund. 

It also claims that it has not been a deterrent for new sales. 

In a presentation to the 2024 Macquarie Australia Conference in Sydney on 8 May, it showed investors how lucrative its DMF model is and with high property prices, the residents also leave with a smile on their faces. 

Lifestyle Communities’ ‘Live now, pay later’ model in FY23, saw the business bank $11.8 million from the DMF gained from 178 resales. In FY22, Lifestyle Communities received $10.25 million. 

The average DMF in FY23 was $81,545 and the average cash gain to the homeowner $79,609. In FY22, the average DMF received was $71,665 and the homeowners profited from the home sale by an average $50,751. 

Lifestyle Communities has seen a 9.5% resale price growth in the past 10 years. 

This year it has paid a total of $68 million for new sites for communities in Merrifield, which is Victoria’s largest master planned mixed-use community, in Mickleham, 29km north of Melbourne’s CBD; Clifton Springs, the coastal town on the Bellarine Peninsula, near Geelong, and Yarrawonga, the town on the south bank of the Murray River.  

Lifestyle Communities told investors it expects FY25 revenue to be between $260 million and $300 million. 

Browse villages.com.au for the latest on Seniors Living including availability. 

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