The early results of a survey of over 4,000 village residents across the country by the Retirement Village Residents Association has indicated that the majority understood the terms and conditions of the contract they had signed and were satisfied or very satisfied with life in their village.

As we reported in The Weekly SOURCE, the Retirement Village Residents Association in each state banded together to run the survey last month in the wake of the recent negative media coverage by the ABC on retirement villages, which suggested that residents were being ‘ripped off’.

“We are tired of the media painting all residents in retirement villages as incapable of making their own decisions, implying they didn’t understand what they were signing, and suggesting they are being exploited,” said Judy Mayfield, President of  the Association of Residents of Queensland Retirement Villages (ARQRV).

The seven-page preliminary summary report found that 90% understood the difference between buying into a village versus a home on the open market.

The majority of respondents recalled receiving a disclosure document from sales staff, with only 6.5% indicating they did not receive one.

72% reported having a good, or very good, understanding of the information in the document.

Room for improvement

These findings show that while buyers come in informed about what retirement village living is, there remains room for improvement around disclosure documentation. 

However, it does not suggest operators are doing the wrong thing or are negligent at all – rather that there is more work to do around ensuring all residents know what they are buying into.

8% of respondents reported that they did not realise there would be regular recurrent charges. 

The report also identified several areas for improvement, including understanding of contracts; calculation of capital gain; and the fees for preparing a village unit for sale.

Interestingly, 13% of residents made the decision on their own, without seeking advice. 

These buyers are the ones the 7:30 program will likely feature in the future if operators don’t do more to identify these people and take them on a journey about what they have already bought into.

The Residents Associations will release a more detailed report in early 2025, including recommendations for improvements to ensure residents, existing and prospective, have a good understanding of the terms of their contracts.

You can read the full preliminary summary report here.