Information for visitors to our aged care centres. Read more
Independent living in an IRT retirement village is an affordable choice for a great life.
At IRT, we want to make it as easy as possible to understand the costs involved with living in a retirement village. It’s worth taking the time to understand how it all works, and we’re here to help each step of the way.
All retirement villages have various costs, aside from the cost of your new home. However, you’re buying more than a new home, you’re buying a lifestyle and peace of mind that comes with taking care of your needs – now and into the future.
You can think of the costs in three easy-to-understand stages.
Before moving in, you pay a lump sum or ingoing contribution, which represents the purchase price of your new home. This gives you the right to reside in your villa or apartment in accordance with your residence contract.
Recurrent charges are essentially service fees that village residents pay to cover the cost of operating and maintaining the village. They’re paid either fortnightly or monthly, depending upon the village, and cover things such as:
Providers are not legally allowed to make a profit from these contributions and they are calculated based on actual day-to-day operating costs required to run the village.
You may choose a purchase option which enables you to reduce the amount of the ingoing contribution by agreeing to pay a fee when you leave. This departure fee is only payable when you permanently vacate your home, which means you retain more of your money to support your lifestyle while you live at the village.
The departure fee amount will depend upon the pricing option you chose when you entered the village, so it’s best to talk to the village sales consultant for specific details.
You pay a lower ingoing contribution on entry to an IRT villa or apartment. This contribution is non-refundable.
When you leave IRT the ingoing contribution will be refunded, less a departure fee. This fee is calculated on a daily basis at a rate of 5% p.a. of the ingoing contribution for a maximum of 6 years. If you stay for 6 years or longer, the refund will be 70% of the ingoing contribution.
When you leave IRT the ingoing contribution will be refunded, less a departure fee. This fee is calculated on a daily basis at a rate of 2.5% p.a. of the ingoing contribution for a maximum of 6 years. If you stay for 6 years or longer, the refund will be 85% of the ingoing contribution.
You pay a higher ingoing contribution on entry to an IRT villa or apartment. The full amount of this contribution will be refunded on departure from IRT.
* These payment options are examples only and differ from village to village.
Residence rights differ between states and territories, but most providers offer long-term residence rights via lease or licence.
This gives you the right to occupy the home for as long as you like, without having to purchase the property and pay stamp duty.
Residence contracts differ from village to village, so talk to our team to find out more and be sure to get independent legal advice.
Exit fees are payable with this option. When you leave IRT the ingoing contribution will be refunded, less the exit fee. This fee is calculated on a daily basis at a rate of 5% p.a. of the ingoing contribution for a maximum of 7 years. If you stay for 7 years or longer, the refund will be 65% of the ingoing contribution.
Exit fees are payable with this option. When you leave IRT the ingoing contribution will be refunded, less the exit fee. This fee is calculated on a daily basis at a rate of 2.5% p.a. of the ingoing contribution for a maximum of 7 years. If you stay for 7 years or longer, the refund will be 82.5% of the ingoing contribution.
The full amount of this contribution will be refunded on departure from IRT.
* These payment options are examples only and differ from village to village.
Retirement village residents pay an ingoing contribution before they move into their new home. This contribution gives you residence rights to your villa or apartment in accordance with your Residence Contract.
As part of the Residence Contract, you can choose to pay a departure fee when you move out or pass away. This determines how much of the ingoing contribution will be refunded to you or your estate. If you can choose to pay a smaller ingoing contribution up front, you will retain more money to support your lifestyle and care as you age.
Different providers offer different departure fees, also known as ‘deferred payments’. The 2017 PwC / Property Council Retirement Census found that 60% of providers offer a maximum deferred payment of 30% capped after 10 years of residency.
Retirement village residents make regular financial contributions to help cover the cost of maintaining their community. These contributions help to pay for services like the cleaning of shared areas. Providers are not allowed to make a profit from these contributions.
The 2017 PwC / Property Council Retirement Census found that most retirement village residents pay $453 monthly. The regular contribution you’ll make as an IRT retirement village resident depends on which community you live in and the size of your apartment.
Our team will explain your regular contributions in writing before you decide to move into an IRT retirement village. We recommend you get independent advice before making any decisions.
A capital gain is the profit you make from the sale of your retirement village villa or apartment. You can generally choose whether you want all, some or none of the capital gain to be paid to you or your estate when you move out or pass away. This is negotiated as part of your Residence Agreement. Talk to our team to find out more and get independent legal advice.
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