As we reported here, Housing Minister Mick de Brenni introduced the Housing Legislation (Building Better Futures) Amendment Bill 2017 (Bill), which included major changes to both the Manufactured Homes (Residential Parks) Act 2003 (Qld) (MHRP Act) and the Retirement Villages Act 1999(Qld) (RV Act) last August after the damning Fairfax/Four Corners investigation into the sector.
New behavioural standards for village operators and residents and statutory buy back provisions are already in place, with the rest of the amendments to begin in two stages.
HopgoodGanim has done a useful piece outlining the first stage amendments, which include:
- for new residents, the replacement of the current public information document (PID) with a village comparison document; and a prospective costs document.
- a requirement for operators to maintain a website
- a requirement for entry and exit condition reports to be prepared and provided within certain strict timeframes
- additional mandatory content for residence contracts – including the relocation of the capital replacement fund and maintenance reserve fund provisions from the PID to the residence contract
- the uncoupling of the maintenance reserve fund contribution from the general services charge
- a narrower scope for reinstatement work required to be completed by or on behalf of an outgoing resident
- changes to the timing that an operator must provide a resident with financial statements
- a requirement for the resale value agreed between a scheme operator and a resident with respect to an unsold right to reside, to be updated every three months (rather than six months under the current legislation)
- the introduction of a statutory process and valuation criteria whereby a valuer is engaged to determine the resale value of a right to reside
- an ability for regulations to be made which relate to the provision of equipment in a retirement village for public safety
You can read the full piece HERE.
