+ 55 Downsizing Communities
Before moving into a retirement village / independent living community it is important to review the contracts carefully to understand the legal structure.
There are many different legal structures:
- Long-term lease
- Long-term license
- Strata title
- Free hold
- Community title
- Unit trust
- Manufactured home
- Conventional lease
Each option may raise different issues for stamp duty, GST, service charges and fees, security of tenure, termination, vacating the premises, capital gain or loss and credit risk.
Retirement villages & assisted living units are an independent living option. The person buys the right to live in the unit under various types of contracts but the government does not help with any of the costs.
Many villages only offer self–care units (assisted living units) for people who can look after themselves. Some villages also offer serviced units (serviced apartments), where residents can be provided with meals, house–cleaning, laundry and some personal care for an additional monthly fee.
This is different to aged care where the person receives full care and the fees are regulated by government, with the government paying some of these fees. Fees for retirement villages are not subsidised by the government although clients may still be able to access home care services.
Some complexes include both retirement villages and aged care facilities. These arrangements may make the transition to aged care (if required) less stressful especially when dealing with couples. The two operations are regulated quite separately under their respective legislative instruments
This short video will share some of the differences between the most common tenures:-