Life in a retirement village: Are they a haven or a prison?

Retirement villages have been in the news, with complaints that the occupation rights model used by many leaves residents financially worse off. But Joy Crabtree says the positives outweigh the negatives so long as you go in with your eyes wide open.

My husband Bruce and I talked for years about living in a retirement village. It always appealed to both of us, so we were excited when the time came. The criticism levelled at some retirement villages does not tally with our experiences, nor many of our friends.

The negative stories I hear fail to mention the busy and enjoyable life we lead in our own village and I know countless others who feel the same way.

We went through the process of making the decision with our eyes wide open and there was plenty of advice and information available so we could make an informed decision.

We always planned to move into a retirement village on Auckland’s North Shore when we retired and even put our names down on the waiting lists at two villages in the 1990s when we were in our 50s. However, when places became available, we were still working full-time and had also taken up cycling.

We cycled the 160km fun ride around Lake Taupo¯ and completed annual cycling trips of 1000-1400km throughout New Zealand, Australia (all on main roads) and further afield in England, Ireland and Europe.

In July 2008, six weeks after returning from cycling 1100km around Northern Ireland, Bruce suffered a medical event, which resulted in 10 days in intensive care in a medically-induced coma. Due to his high levels of fitness, he defied expectations and by September had returned to his work as skipper on the Auckland and Waiheke ferries.

This was a wake-up call and we began looking at retirement villages again – and did a lot more research.

Our key criteria was the village must have hospital-level aged residential care available. We wanted a top-floor apartment, facing north for maximum sun and plenty of deck space. In addition, the lounge needed to be large enough to accommodate my grand piano. As a professional pianist, this was essential. I was Dame Malvina Major’s accompanist for 20 years.

We moved into a two-bedroom apartment in March 2009. The village met all our requirements including having hospital-level aged residential care on site and the airport was much closer than the North Shore, for our overseas cycling trips.

The price for an Occupation Rights Agreement for a spacious two-bedroom apartment with undercover carpark was a pleasant surprise. It provided us with a tidy sum in the bank after we sold our home. In addition, the weekly charges for our rates, insurance and various village costs is very modest compared with living in the community and is even fixed for our lives, which is reassuring during these times of high inflation.

We carefully went through the ORA before taking it to our lawyer, who was satisfied we thoroughly understood all aspects of the agreement.

Choosing to live here was the right decision for us at the right time. It allows us to be able to travel overseas for a month and all we have to do is lock up and leave. We know our apartment is safe and secure.

There are numerous activities for residents and one can be as busy as one wants. There are weekly bus trips for shopping at Royal Oak plus weekly trips further afield. Residents appreciate having bus stops on both sides of the village.

The calendar is full of entertainment of every kind in the Atrium, which looks out to the bowling green and chapel, used regularly for services. There are movies in the theatre, an extensive library and village shop, outdoor and indoor bowls, the ever-popular swimming pool and spa, the cafe´ and the two gyms. We also have the best hairdresser in the village salon from Tuesday to Friday and a visiting podiatrist, ear clinician and physiotherapist available by appointment.

Bruce and I really value belonging to the village Wellness Centre as it means we can book appointments with our regular doctor who is on-site every Monday for two hours. We’ve both had emergencies and the response has been immediate and effective. If there isn’t a nurse or doctor available on site, our call goes straight through to Senior Care Health.

Retirement village living isn’t for everyone. However, we did our research and understood the financial implications and it has worked so well for us. It has given us certainty about our financial situation and provided Bruce and I with security, community and companionship that we couldn’t necessarily have received in the community.

Choosing to live here was the right decision for us at the right time.