New NSW regulations commence

The new NSW Retirement Villages Regulation 2017 commenced this month, instilling transparency and consistency into the fee structure for retirement villages in NSW.

Part of the implementation of the Regulation is be the introduction of an online fee comparison tool to compare village pricing. The Property Council has been working closely on the design and implementation of this tool with NSW Fair Trading and is pleased with the outcome.

“The Property Council welcomes the introduction of the Regulation as it makes it simpler for potential retirement village residents to easily compare value offerings and supports the key changes to standard disclosure provisions for village fee structures,” Property Council NSW Executive Director Jane Fitzgerald said today.

“The Property Council recently released an eight-point plan for Australia’s retirement villages to deliver higher standards and clearer information about costs and contracts and this initiative from the NSW Government is entirely consistent with the plan.

“Any tool that helps people make the best decision for their particular circumstances is one that should be welcomed and aligns well with steps the industry has already taken to make things simpler for those considering making the move into a retirement village.

“It is important that the community has the right information at their fingertips when making any decision that involves a commitment about their long-term future and the calculator supports the key changes to standard disclosure provisions for village fee structures.

“We look forward to working with NSW Fair Trading further to refine the comparison tool and help grow the retirement villages sector.”