Retirement Living Council national conference wrap up

Over 250 delegates attended the inaugural RLC conference at the Grand Hyatt Melbourne last Thursday and Friday, with 42 speakers. Four areas of discussion resonated most; they were:
• John McNamara (Head of Retirement Living and Aged Care Bendigo & Adelaide Bank) said the market was moving again and looking more positive. Banks are feeling better.
• Stockland’s new Retirement CEO, Stephen Bull, reported that they have recalibrated their business and cost base to the market of the past 2 to 3 years and so any positive movement in the market will see significant benefit. 1% growth in sales will deliver $1 million to the bottom line.
• Kim Teudt, GM Retirement at Churches of Christ QLD (and a Life Member of the old RVA), explained the facts of life - that the old 3% DMF model does not work when residents are entering much later in life, resulting in a 1 to 3 year residency. Operator will lose money. She advocated a 35% DMF over five years. The average age in her villages is 89; average moving in age is 84 and average length of stay 6 years. For new villages entry years 79 to 81 years of age.
• Peter Inge challenged the audience to accept that the future for villages in metropolitan areas will be medium rise with a mix of retirement village, aged care and normal residential, combined with a commercial shopping precinct. (Some would say in other words the Hans Becker Humanitas model from Rotterdam). Lively debate concluded that getting approvals for such projects are unlikely in today’s market. Interestingly four years ago Peter Inge stated at a conference that medium rise village developments had no future in Australia because all Australians wanted their own backyard. Today he and his wife own and manage their old village, Prospect Hill – a medium rise village in suburban Camberwell.