Retirement villages: can I afford it?

Our purpose as a business is to make people’s lives better. This is always at the forefront of my mind when I ask my clients: “How can you use your hard-earned money to make your life and your family’s lives better?”

Retirement villages are becoming increasingly popular as they offer a safe community environment, maintenance-free living, and many onsite facilities for those aged 55 and over. It is also a topic which crops up in many of our financial planning meetings, both for clients themselves and older family members.

I must stress that retirement villages are not for everyone, and it’s very much a personal choice as to whether they are suitable for you or your loved ones. At Equilibrium, our role as financial planners is to give you the confidence that you can afford to live in a retirement village if that is your goal. Ultimately, we want you to have the confidence to use your money to make your life better.

When discussing this in client planning meetings, it is something I have first-hand experience of. My gran and grandad had been happily married for years and did everything together. My brother and I have fond memories of all the days out they took us on. This now brings back lovely memories when visiting the same places with my three boys, Charlie, Myles and Archie.

Unfortunately, my gran passed away in 2016, which was a big upset for the family and hit my grandad very hard. He no longer went outside and didn’t socialise much either (as most of their friends had passed away). At the time, it was clear my grandad was starting to feel depressed and struggling to keep on top of things around the home.

When a new retirement village called ‘The Cottons’ was being built near where he lived in Ramsbottom, my grandad took it upon himself to find out more about it. After much research and mulling over, he came to me to ask my opinion.

From the minute we began talking, I could see my grandad was really keen on The Cottons. When I asked him what was holding him back, his response was one I’ve heard often from clients in similar situations: “Money!”.

I decided to dig deeper and asked why he felt money was the issue. It turns out he was particularly worried about:

• Affording the ongoing monthly service charge.
• Not having enough money to pay for care in the future.
• Guilt in spending his daughter’s (my mum’s) inheritance.

I knew I could help with all of his concerns. Firstly, I used a cash flow forecast to provide a clear picture of his income, expenditure and savings. We included ongoing costs for The Cottons as well as potential care fees.

The financial plan was then stress tested or as I like to say: “We threw the kitchen sink at it!”. This ensured that if anything adverse were to happen, such as prolonged high inflation or unexpected medical expenses, he would still be ok financially. This gave my grandad an enormous amount of confidence that he could afford to take the next step.

All problems exist in the absence of a good conversation.

One Sunday over lunch, I shared with my mum the fears my grandad had about leaving her a worthy inheritance. As expected, my mum’s main concern was my grandad’s quality of life. She reassured him of this, offering him the comfort and confidence he needed to make his decision.

My grandad now resides at The Cottons and has thrived since being there. With the right guidance and full support from his family, he has used his money to make his life better.

How Equilibrium can help

If a retirement village is something you’re considering, it may be helpful to discuss how it fits into your financial plans. Speaking with a financial expert can provide clarity on affordability and help you make informed decisions to get the most out of your money.

As mentioned, all problems exist in the absence of a good conversation. At Equilibrium, we actively encourage our clients to bring family members to the planning meeting to enable an open, honest and productive discussion. Remember, we are here to help both you and your family.

Find out more

My colleague, Fiona Whitfield, wrote a great article on the balance of cost and comfort of retirement villages that you can read here. If you want to learn more about supporting loved ones financially and having meaningful conversations that can shape their lives, sign up for our Nearest and Dearest Masterclass below.

This article is intended as an informative piece and should not be construed as advice.