“My wife and I moved into a retirement village in August last year after a long gestation period during which we contemplated the pros and cons of such an important move.
Once we made the move, we questioned why we vacillated for so long.
I’m convinced that the general public still has misconceptions or misunderstandings – or total ignorance – about retirement villages, where they liken them to nursing homes.
This unfortunate perception couldn’t be further from the truth.
as a result, many operators fell the need to describe retirement villages as lifestyle or resort-type living to avoid such besmirching.
there are many good reasons why Australia and Australians would benefit if they were better informed on retirement living.
First, this industry could well be the answer, or a major solution, to Australia’s housing crisis.
Retirees considering right sizing into a retirement community would free up homes for young families and just as importantly, release capital tied up in their existing homes.
Even more important, as a Retirement Living Council report has shown, residents in retirement communities are physically and mentally healthier because they are up to five times more socially active and 41 per cent happier. Moving into a retirement village does not end your previous life, but in fact enhances it as you have more time- no gardening, pool cleaning, home repairs, etc. – to pursue other activities, mainly extensive travelling, and are more likely to engage in increased social interaction with friends and family.
The other major benefit is that all residents feel much safer in a village as opposed to their own home.
The only foreseeable problem is that with the number of retirees over the next 20 years expected to increase by 70 per cent, developers are not keeping up with the likely future demand for retirment accommodation.
it is, therefore, critical that both Federal and State governments provide suitable building initiatives for developers to turbocharge this industry.”
Bruce Strang
St Ives Centro Resident
Letter to the editor, West Australian Newspaper
10th August 2024