Mike Wong introduced Shona who was in Taupo.She travelled extensively to exotic places including the Soviet Union, Turkey, then overland to Pakistan, India, PNG.
She is now sales advisor to Ryman Health Care at Princess Alexandra, Ahuriri.
Shona lives in Parkland and is reasonably settled.
She outlined her talk saying she wanted to talk about the benefits of retirement living. After 5 years working for Ryman she considers it to be a brilliant company
The points she outlined were of living in a retirement village were
• Friendship and community. Important if you find yourself on your own. In PA there are two-thirds ladies one-third men, so the village provides the opportunity for making new friends!
• Security Very important as one grows older.
• No worries re home maintenance. Standard concerns about the maintenance of the apartments are all handled by the village maintenance team at no cost to the owner
• Care options to suit your needs All care options are available at PA. Few Retirement Villages can offer this.
• Peace of mind Your family know you’re safe and secure even if they live out of town • Activities, events, outings Retirement villages such as PA will have lots of activities, both in-house, and outside with trips to many exciting events.
• Assistance with transport Princess Alexandra is part of the Ryman Group which was founded in Christchurch in 1984 by two men who were horrified at the conditions they found in some existing rest homes. Ryman grew and now has over 5000 staff with 11,000 residents housed in 33 villages with 3 currently under construction. You have to be 70 plus before you can move into a village.
Shona then spent time talking about her personal experience with her own parents. who lived their life on a quarter acre section for 40 plus years, when her father contracted cancer. They decided to move into Sommerset in Taupo where her mother loved life. Father died after two years, but by this time her mother had made very good friends. She died last year after a series of brain tumours. Before this, they realized Sommerset could not offer the level of palliative care needed and she had to move to another centre which was very distressing for her. This stresses the need when looking for a retirement home, to determine whether it can offer the level of health care needed.
Ryman fees structure. They have a fixed weekly fee of $119. They have over 100 care beds at PA. They are absolutely booked out as are rest homes HB wide. Shona outlined other activities available like the bar! - Very popular. They are well-staffed.Question time responses.
o There is a 90-day pay-back in full if the resident is dissatisfied and wants to leave.
o You can’t just sell your house and expect to move in. There is a waiting list and it may be 2-3 years long. o Fixed fee of $119/week which covers rates and maintenance. Unit occupiers pay telephone and power bills.
o The 20% deferred management fee is the deferred contribution made annually by an “owner” and is calculated at 4% pa for up to 5 years, therefore does not exceed 20%. Hence if you pay $400,000 to purchase a “license to occupy”, then Ryman will repay the purchase price less 20% deferred maintenance or $80,000. The owner will then receive $320,000 when the unit is vacated. (This is better than Summerset which is 5% pa for 5 years, therefore the deferred maintenance fee after 5 years is 25% of the purchase price.)
o Ryman (and others like Summerset) pay for the refurbishment of the unit when a new occupier moves in.
o Ryman makes its money on sales. A recent 3 bedroom unit just sold for $600,000.