Lend Leases view of retirement
Lend Lease Head of Retirement Living, Michael Eggington, gave a very considered review of the retirement village sector last week at the Retirement Communities forum. His major thrust was that the sector was stalled. He identified the need for...
Lend Lease Head of Retirement Living, Michael Eggington, gave a very considered review of the retirement village sector last week at the Retirement Communities forum. His major thrust was that the sector was stalled. He identified the need for information to support innovative strategy and planning, plus to support presentations to government.
His major points were:
the sector is relevant to just small segment of the community 6% of 65-year-olds and older, and this segment is narrowing
circumstances are conspiring against us with the average age of residents now aged between 81 and 84, a major challenge
we are not developing and we are not in the right places
we are not innovating
there is an urgent need for planning but this is difficult because the sector does not have measures in place that can demonstrate that retirement villages can deliver efficiencies and employment
governments are confused about the sectors role
recent history has given the investment sector a negative view
we need greater certainty around cash flow
we have a responsibility to carry the community along with our vision of the role retirement villages can make in vibrant suburbs
we need to introduce retirement into the community so it becomes relevant
growth will not result from an improving economy alone
people move out of homes into retirement villages for social connection
we need to promote the role senior Australians contribute to making a great communities
controls in our sector inhibit our ability to compete structures are very consumer centric, for instance the refundable deposit
these major points cant be done without government support
we need independent data to present to government
all stakeholders need to be brought into the discussion
we need to look at tax the sale of the family home jeopardizes entitlements such as the pension [thus limiting options]
future customers will be more reliant on super than the family home and our sector will need to respond
Villages are ageing and we are not refreshing the product
for instance we need to think of small of villages and product innovation around services
