Adam Stead

Retirement Village Or Lifestyle Resort?

28 February 2019 by Adam Stead

If you’re looking to live or retire on the Gold Coast, there are a few options for over 50s. Your options are dependent on the stage of your retirement and how active and social you are.

Both alternatives offer your own private home, shared facilities, social engagement and low maintenance—however there are also some key differences to be aware of.

Associated Costs & Fees To Consider

A lifestyle community offers a few key differences to a retirement village, particularly in the financial structure. These key differences will have a big effect on your financial position in the future.

Gold Coast retirement villages offer a variety of different purchase structures and are all different—some villages are leasehold, some free hold or some are strata title. When entering a retirement village you usually pay a one off entry contribution fee, or purchase price for your home or unit and then you pay a monthly service or body corporate fee. In a retirement village, you may only be able to sell through the village management and you may be required to pay refurbishment fees, share your capital gains with the village owner and/or pay an exit or deferred management fee. This ultimately can leave you with a lot less money and fewer options to move forward.

In an over 50s lifestyle community, like Seachange Lifestyle Resorts at Riverside Coomera, you purchase your own home within the resort and pay a fee to lease the land upon which it resides. This ongoing costs is referred to as a site fee and covers not only the lease of the land on which your home resides, but also the maintenance of the garden and lawn to the front of your home, all common areas and the beautiful recreational facilities at the resort. Because you are paying a lease or rental fee for the land where your home resides, you may be eligible for rent assistance on these site fees making the ongoing costs even more affordable.

One of the biggest differences between retirement villages and an over 50s resort is if you ever want to leave Seachange Riverside Coomera, you can sell your home at any time. You have the option of appointing the resort’s sales team to sell the home for you, or an external real estate agent, or you can always sell it yourself. In doing so, you will not have to pay any exit fees and you receive 100% capital gain achieved on the sale of your home.

Varying Levels of Care

A retirement home, village or private aged care facility on the Gold Coast may provide a higher level of on-site medical care. This is ideal for individuals and couples who require this.

The Upper Coomera Medical Centre is a few minutes away with the Gold Coast University Hospital and Pindara Private Hospital less than 15 minutes from the resort. These are all great facilities and a huge asset to the residents at Seachange Riverside Coomera.

The people you want to socialise with, level of care you require and your investment strategy will greatly influence your decision on which retirement property and community model that you choose.

At Seachange, the residents generally live healthy, active lifestyles and enjoy socialising and making the most of the 5-star facilities. If you are currently researching your retirement options, why not arrange a free tour of the Seachange Riverside Coomera property, to see the facilities and home layouts for yourself?

Swimming for Health

21 February 2019 by Adam Stead

In November 2018 both of our new resorts at Toowoomba and Coomera opened their new swimming pools and our residents have found doings laps is an ideal way to beat the heat and stick to their new year’s fitness resolution.

Swimming offers a whole host of benefits including…

Low Impact on Joints

Swimming may be the perfect exercise for those who have joint problems and don’t want to hurt them further. There is no traumatic stress on the hips, knees, ankles or back when swimming because they aren’t bearing weight or slamming into the pavement like what happens in jogging or running.

Increases Flexibility

While most people think you have to do stretching to increase your flexibility, swimming also increases it because you are stretching without even knowing it. Increasing flexibility can increase coordination and give you better posture, less soreness, less back pain and fewer injuries.

Tones Muscles

Water provides twelve times as much resistance as air does. In addition, swimming forces you to use almost every muscle in your body. Even if you are just walking on the bottom of the pool, you are getting great exercise due to the resistance of the water. This builds your strength, muscle tone and self-confidence.

Less Chance of Osteoporosis

Swimming makes your bones bear weight, making you less likely to suffer from osteoporosis. After the age of 50, approximately 33% of women and 20% of men experience at least one fracture of a bone due to osteoporosis. Swimming makes it less likely.

Healthy Heart

Swimming is an aerobic exercise. In other words, when you swim, you help your heart become larger, stronger and pump blood more efficiently. This reduces inflammation in your arteries and reduces your chances of coronary heart disease.

Better Mental Health

Swimming can actually improve your mental health because it can improve mood levels and reduce stress. Swimming is also a great way to be around people and avoid isolation.

If you would like to find out more about the facilities on offer at our Seachange Resorts call 1800 54 66 55 to be put in touch with a sales consultant.

Seachange Riverside Coomera residents enjoy swimming in the resort’s luxury pools

The new luxury pool at Seachange Toowoomba

New Toowoomba Display Homes Now Open

30 January 2019 by Adam Stead

With two new display homes now open and ready to view, there has never been a better time to visit Toowoomba’s newest over 50s resort.

The recently completed Davis design home is a classic example of how clever design can enable home owners to downsize without compromise. This home has been designed with a large North facing alfresco area that floods light into the open plan living and dining room.

Like many of the homes at Seachange, this floor plan offers an oversized master bedroom complete with ensuite and his and hers walk in robes. There is a large second bedroom and bathroom ideal for hosting visiting friends and family in comfort. The light and airy study, or multipurpose area, enables homes owner plenty of space to explore hobbies and passions.

The kitchen acts as the heart of the home, with stylish island bench completed with feature pendant lighting overhead. The spacious walk-in pantry and appliance cupboard, ample bench space and premium appliances make this home a chef’s dream.

To book an inspection of this home call 1800 046 500 or visit our sales office that is open from Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm at 99 Hampton Street, Harristown.

You can check out the full feature article in the Toowoomba Chronicle.

Toowoomba Retirement Villages vs Active Lifestyle Resorts

14 January 2019 by Adam Stead

When it comes to over 50s living and retiring in Toowoomba, there are a number of options available. Depending on the stage of your retirement and how active you are, two main options to consider are retirement villages and active over 50s living. Both alternatives offer your own private home, shared facilities, social engagement and low maintenance—however there are also some key differences to be aware of.

Associated Costs & Fees

Moving into a lifestyle community rather than a retirement village offers a few key differences in the financial structure that will make a big difference to your financial position in the future.

Retirement villages offer a variety of different purchase structures and are all different—some villages are lease hold, some free hold or some are strata title. When entering a retirement village you usually pay a one off entry contribution fee, or purchase price for your home or unit and then you pay a monthly service or body corporate fee. In a retirement village, you may only be able to sell through the village management and you may be required to pay refurbishment fees, share your capital gains with the village owner and/or pay an exit or deferred management fee. This ultimately can leave you with a lot less money and fewer options to move forward.

In an over 50s lifestyle community, like Seachange Lifestyle Resorts, you purchase your own home within the resort and pay a fee to lease the land upon which it resides. This ongoing costs is referred to as a site fee and covers not only the lease of the land on which your home resides, but also the maintenance of the garden and lawn to the front of your home, all common areas and the beautiful recreational facilities at the resort. Because you are paying a lease or rental fee for the land where your home resides, you may be eligible for rent assistance on these site fees making the ongoing costs even more affordable.

One of the biggest differences between retirement villages and an over 50s resort is if you ever want to leave Seachange Toowoomba, you can sell your home at any time. You have the option of appointing the resort’s sales team to sell the home for you, or an external real estate agent, or you can always sell it yourself. In doing so, you will not have to pay any exit fees and you receive 100% capital gain achieved on the sale of your home.

Varying Levels of Care

A retirement home, village or private aged care facility in Toowoomba may provide a higher level of on-site medical care. This is ideal for individuals and couples who require this.

An over 50’s lifestyle community like Seachange puts more of a focus on providing facilities and activities for residents who enjoy an active lifestyle. While not having on-site medical support, Seachange Toowoomba is positioned within a short 7 minute drive to the Toowoomba Base Hospital and Allied Health Centre. Both facilities offer a vast array of general and specialty services so this is a great asset to the Seachange Toowoomba community, in the event that help is ever needed.

The people you want to socialise with, level of care you require and your investment strategy will greatly influence your decision on which retirement property and community model that you choose.

At Seachange, the residents generally live healthy, active lifestyles and enjoy socialising and making the most of the 5-star facilities. If you are currently researching your retirement options, why not arrange a free tour of the Seachange Toowoomba property, to see the facilities and home layouts for yourself?

Wrapping up a busy year for Seachange Riverside Coomera

17 December 2018 by Adam Stead

2018 has been a landmark year in the development of Seachange Riverside Coomera. The project was officially launched in February and construction of the first stage of the recreational facilities, the River House, was completed in November.

The Resort’s community is also growing, with more than 35 home owners making up this boutique community. The completion of the River House has paved the way for the start of the Resort’s activities and events program, which will continue to build the sense of community and allow this Resort to flourish. Friday night happy hour is already a firmly established routine for most residents, and a fishing club and community garden group have also kicked off. In the New Year, water aerobics, bocce and an art class will be added to the schedule of activities.

An exciting and significant milestone was reached this month with the start of construction of the Resort’s main Country Club. In November, a contract in excess of $4 million dollars was signed with Hutchinson Builders for the construction of this building. The start of the Country Club comes 6 months ahead of the original schedule and will be completed alongside the Resort’s main entry statement along Ghostgum Grove, which is due to be delivered by Easter 2019.

Opening of the River House

19 November 2018 by Adam Stead

The River House at Seachange Coomera was very well received by residents that live at this vibrant and growing community. This facility was officially opened on the 9th November.

Following the symbolic cutting of a red ribbon, residents of the resort and their guests were welcomed to enjoy champagne and canapés, a live Jazz band and panoramic views of the Coomera River.

The River House is one of two recreational facilities to be built at Seachange Riverside Coomera and will become a social hub for this growing new community.

Internally there is a library, billiards and darts, as well as a kitchen and dining area which flows out to a large under cover deck area with BBQs overlooking the heated lap pool.

One of the most spectacular features of the River House is the outlook. The building has been positioned to take advantage of the elevated position and views out over the tranquil river front and green farmland beyond.