The SCV Group has to be admired for its tenacity to carry on business given the cash it has spent chasing the belief that its rental model will finally pay off. It has its own SunnyCove branded villages plus it has taken over most of the Village Life group total of 87 in all. A listed public company, it was asked by the ASX this week to confirm that it had enough cash to meet its commitments. They said basically yes. They also have a new CEO, Andrea Slingsby, who comes from outside the industry, having spent the last 14 years with Flight Centre. She will have to learn fast.
As an observation, the industry needs a rental model that works for people that cannot afford the entry fee to a village. Residents we have interviewed really appreciate the lifestyle and value proposition. The industry of course has to be concerned if one village gets in trouble, let alone 87. One has to remember that rental villages also do not come under most Retirement Village Acts but the public perception will be that they are just that, they are retirement villages.
