Jill and Arnold are baby-boomers in their early 60's, currently in the process of wrapping up their working lives and looking forward to a "sea-change" move closer to the coast. Both are fit and active, although many years of smoking (he has quit now) have left Arnold with high blood pressure and mild emphysema.
Arnold is a keen fisherman and wants to buy a "tinnie". Jill has recently discovered her artistic side through a local community college watercolour course and wants to pursue painting landscapes (and perhaps make a little cash on the side by selling her works in a local gallery).
Their accountant has advised that the sale of their home in Gladesville, suburban Sydney, should leave them with enough cash to buy a retirement property somewhere on the coast, with some funds left over to add to their superannuation nest egg.
Jill and Arnold love the far north coast of NSW and have spent many Christmas holidays in Byron Bay and its surrounds. They would like to move to somewhere in this area but don’t know where to start looking and are confused by the multitude of options available. They have asked Find My Retirement Home to assist.
Due to Arnold's health considerations both now and into the future, we advised the couple to consider an area with good local health services. We recommended the Tweed area on the border of Queensland and New South Wales, as it has a good-sized regional hospital. In addition, the Coolangatta Airport is close by for trips away to visit the children. This region is very popular with retirees and has one of the highest concentrations in Australia of people aged 65+.
Jill and Arnold were familiar with the area and gave Find My Retirement Home the green light to conduct a Micro Market Analysis of the region for them. The analysis gave the couple a detailed comparative overview of the retirement living offerings available, so they were able to easily evaluate which complex offered the facilities and services they were looking for. After taking the pair through our research, Jill and Arnold were so excited they flew up to the Tweed for a long weekend to inspect the villages they thought were suitable.
Upon their return, the couple told us they had fallen in love with a small complex in Banora Point. The community was close to shops, and importantly, not far from a boat ramp giving access to the Tweed River. Find My Retirement Home then conducted a Financial Evaluation of the ownership structure of the complex, which in this case was a Deferred Management Fee scheme. The Financial Evaluation showed the total cost to Jill and Arnold, incorporating capital growth and inflation, based on three possible exit scenarios. The costs were well within their price range and they directed us to speak with the sales staff at the village and see if we could negotiate a better deal for them.
Unfortunately, the village chosen by Jill and Arnold had no vacancies and a waiting list for interested purchasers (this is not uncommon in popular retirement destinations). In this case we were unable to achieve a better price for Jill and Arnold, due to the demand buyers have placed on the complex.
The couple have their hearts set on this village however, so they have put their names onto the waiting list and are prepared to wait for a vacancy to arise. Jill and Arnold are comfortable with their decision and know that they have made the best possible choice, thanks to Find My Retirement Home's independent research and analysis.