Retirement complexes

Be_Happy

From reading the posts in this thread, surely it's obvious that so much depends on each person's circumstances.

If you are one of a couple, or have family and friends nearby then by all means live in your bungalow with visitors and people on call if needed, but retirement flats are ideal for the person left on their own, possibly too shy to seek out company.

seven-day-weekend

Be_Happy wrote: »

From reading the posts in this thread, surely it's obvious that so much depends on each person's circumstances.

If you are one of a couple, or have family and friends nearby then by all means live in your bungalow with visitors and people on call if needed, but retirement flats are ideal for the person left on their own, possibly too shy to seek out company.

I agree, and if I am ever left on my own (which Heaven forbid), then I may well be interested in one.

I hope I would still have my friends though!

namecheck

margaretclare wrote: »

We did visit a new McCarthy and Stone complex...You were really buying into the 'retired lifestyle' or that was the impression we got from the saleswoman's spiel. Every sentence was 'We find that older people like/don't like or want/don't want'... The crunch came when we asked about allotted parking spaces.

Unfortunately, most (all?) major organisations now have set procedures on what their employees say, and they get frequent mystery shoppers to check up on them. If they don't follow "procedures" they can get into trouble.

And, although there are private retirement developments which accept people of 55/60, some of whom still work, the majority of buyers still tend to be mid 70s+.

Consequently, many owners do give up their cars or are obliged to do so within a year or two. To have parking for every flat - and for visitors - would make the cost prohibitive, and there would be vast areas of tarmac, as someone else has pointed out.

Blue_Max

Originally Posted by margaretclare
We did visit a new McCarthy and Stone complex...You were really buying into the 'retired lifestyle' or that was the impression we got from the saleswoman's spiel. Every sentence was 'We find that older people like/don't like or want/don't want'... The crunch came when we asked about allotted parking spaces.

I have also had conversations with number of sales people at McCarthy and Stone. They are too sales orientated to be genuinely helpful. They are damaging what McCarthy and Stone claim to stand for.

Independence of having a car, as long as I am able to drive, is important to me.
At one developement I was told that parking space is available to rent. As is typical with sales people, I was told that only one such parking space is available and was urged to move fast!

BTW. by contarst, with all new developments in the recent years, other than retirement housing, regulations require that parking spaces are provided.

beaujolais-nouveau

Swanlander wrote: »

Ask what happens if the fire alarm goes off.

My late mother lived in a flat in a warden-assisted retirement complex in the West Country. When she had to move to a nursing home after a fall, we spent several days clearing her flat. My brother and his wife rented the guest room, and I slept in her flat. In the middle of one night the fire alarms went off, triggered by something in another part of the building.

The alarms were unbearably loud and went on and on and on and on until the fire brigade arrived.

missile

beaujolais-nouveau wrote: »

....
The alarms were unbearably loud and went on and on and on and on until the fire brigade arrived.

Is that not what a fire alarm should do?

margaretclare

Blue_Max wrote: »

I have also had conversations with number of sales people at McCarthy and Stone. They are too sales orientated to be genuinely helpful. They are damaging what McCarthy and Stone claim to stand for.

Independence of having a car, as long as I am able to drive, is important to me.
At one development I was told that parking space is available to rent. As is typical with sales people, I was told that only one such parking space is available and was urged to move fast!

BTW. by contrast, with all new developments in the recent years, other than retirement housing, regulations require that parking spaces are provided.

Exactly. Just what I was trying to say. Our independence, driving our car, is important to us too. Although I didn't realise that 'retirement housing' developments were exempt from the regulations which require parking spaces to be provided.

I've recently seen this locally: www.uniqueretirement.co.uk The bathroom looks much more the kind of thing that we'd require. But no, we're not tempted.

Strumminalong

From what I have been able to ascertain, these places can be a bit of a nightmare for anyone who may inherit one after you are gone.

They are difficult to sell, cannot be rented out and the person would still be liable for all the maintenance charges etc in the meantime.

Its not really something I would wish to burden my relatives with.

beaujolais-nouveau

missile wrote: »

Is that not what a fire alarm should do?

Well, two things. First, if you have a fire alarm in your own house you can usually turn it off yourself before or after you have dealt with whatever set it off. Second, I don't know what the drill is in other retirement complexes but, in the one my mother lived at, if the fire alarm went off you had to remain in your flat. Unlike, say, fire alerts at a place of work or a boarding school, you did not go outside to a muster station where the noise would be less.

I am just suggesting that the OP asks. It was awful; and, potentially, it could happen every night, if you had enough absent-minded elderly people living there who put liver to cook under the grill and then forget about the liver and go to bed.

Spirit_2

My mum bought a 2 bedroomed retirement apartment. She was in her early 60's . It was lovely, it was a new build with a mix of residents and it suited her very well. In the communal stiing areas they held afternoon teas, bingo, carol concerts, new years eve parties. There was enough parking for her to keep her car.

Fast forward to her late 70's. Many of the original residents had died or gone into nursing homes others were aged and frail, others in varying stages of dementia and confusion. My mum was relatively active there were calls on her increasingly in providing help to her neighbours, The social element diminished to attending funerals. As she could no longer drive she gave up her car however there was no covered parking for mobility scooters , so hers and others scooters were parked in the entrance vestibule and ground floor hall.

The garden became out of bounds, as the wooden communal benches were unsuitable and she could no longer manhandle a comfortable garden chair down from her flat.Mum was getiing depressed.

The service charges were then £1700 pa (2007). In 2007 she relocated to a ground floor flat with a garage in a regular development, a 5 minute scooter ride from the town, library, Drs. We took out a mortgage for the new property as at the time she moved there were at least 6 other retirement appartments for sale in her complex.

Mum lived in her new flat until her death in 2010. She had a completely new lease of life whilst there. Her garage door was automated so she could drive her scooter in and plug it in to charge and her costs reduced as her service charges were £600.

Her retirement flat took about 6 months to sell as it was priced to sell. I have heard recently that 12 of the 27 in the complex are now empty or for sale.

I do not think you should worry about the legatee's having to dispose of the apartment, it is ensuring that it will suit you for 20-30 years that matters and that you can move if it does not.