Retirement Flats

Am considering doing the same NanaPlenty, am interested to read the responses.

I'll be interested in reading replies as well. I've always said I'd be dragged kicking and screaming into a retirement flat but we will have to move within the next couple of years when DD moves back to Hampshire and wants us to move nearby.

We've been considering a small bungalow but DH is 75 and not in the best of health. If anything happens to me he'll need support. I'm 72 and thankfully fit and healthy but in two year's time I'll be getting on for 75 myself.

I just don't know how I'd live without a garden though.

My FiL spent two years in a retirement flat before going into long term care and he loved it. The block he was in had a garden and he was able to potter in that even though they had a gardener. He could just do light bits of deadheading etc and the gardener did the rest. It had a communal lounge with a kitchen and he made many friends there, it was those friends who saved his life when he fell ill and needed an ambulance because he did have an aversion to pulling the cord. His friends missed him in the lounge and called the warden in.
I think if you are a sociable person it is the best place to be.

A friend is about to move into a one-bedroomed retirement flat for mobility reasons, and is allowed to take her cat. She will have patio doors that open onto the communal gardens, so it will be almost like having her own garden. It's very tiny, though, and although the bedroom is a decent sized double, I think a couple would be falling over each other.

Make sure there is a demand for retirement flats in your area, otherwise your heirs may have difficulty in selling it, or may have to sell at a loss. Otherwise, if you don’t think you will require warden services, look at purpose built flats. I live in a two bedroom flat, with a balcony, and while it is not a retirement flat, it is future- proof. I like having younger people around, too.

I like having younger people around, too.

That's my worry - being surrounded by oldies, even though I am one.

DH would be in his element.

I'm with DoraM regarding checking out how easily the flat could sold and particularly whether the freeholders/management will take a potentially very hefty fee or percentage of the selling price!

merlotgran I worked for a very well known company who built retirement apartments and quite a lot of the residents where allowed to bring with them favourite plants and shrubs when they moved in,they got involved with hanging basket displays every year and really enjoyed it.
These apartments not only give you peace of mind but they give your families that peace of mind also.
You can be as private or social as you like it's your choice.

I think I'd be willing to swap a garden for a stunning view

It's a good point about the selling price. I've been keeping an eye on RightMove to see how long they remain on the market. There are lots of complexes where DD lives because it's on the coast. Plenty of bungalows with gardens but Oh, it's so built up. Miles and miles of roads and estates and traffic and everything else I've spent my entire life avoiding.

I will have to put them first though. The last thing we want to be is a burden.

If your a young oldie NONONONO.
It would make you old before your time BELIEVE ME.
My friends mother moved into one and she hates it with venom.

My friend has lived in one for nearly 3 years.
When I first visited I thought no way would I want that.
3 years on, no H now I think differently, but I now have S and GD living with me.
If not for them I would do it.
My friend has a social life, company in the communal lounge if she wants it, a visitor apartment when family need it.
I also think ,if plumbing etc goes wrong, it is someone else’s job to get it fixed, no maintenance.
The financial side has to be considered, however her 2 children are so comfortably off it would not be a problem to them, that certainly wouldn’t apply to my family.

I am two weeks into my move into a flat. There are such a variety of retirement flats that you really need to go and look. Even then there will be many things the estate agents don't tell you. I looked at ordinary commercial flats for sale too. Just to get a comparison. Things to think about:

Age: This is over 60 but you can be over 50 if you are the partner of an over 60-year-old.

Capital costs: Buying the flat obviously. Brand new flats tend to lose money on the first sale and some never seem to go up in price. On the other hand, you may be renewing kitchen's, bathrooms, wardrobes (especially if your current ones are fitted and there are none in the flat) and carpets.

Service charges: For some reason, some of the smallest retirement flats in this town have some of the highest service charges. Also, look to see if the work covered by the service charge is being done.

Sinking fund: Ask how this is calculated. I came to the conclusion there are as many ways are there are service providers. Some pay an annual charge, some charge on resale and I am sure there are others. Charges on resale mean you will not be paying out of current income or capital but you will not have as much if you need to go into care or the proceeds go to your heirs. It's a question of how your income/capital is balanced really.

Community: My block is small and has no shared areas other than a standard-sized entrance hall, corridors, lifts, stairs, parking spaces and not very small garden space by comparison to some. All the ground-floor flats have a small patio and some space outside the French door that you can treat as your own. I found this to be quite unusual. I was attracted by the lack of a residents lounge and so far it has proved right. When I have met other flat owners on their way out everyone has introduced themselves and been very pleasant. This view could be coloured by the fact that I don't feel a great need to make new friends as, with this move, I have come back to where most of my friends from the last 40 years still live. It could be different if you are moving to a new area.

Size: They do vary but I found most of the newer ones can feel very small.

Position: The walking (at least for some time) access to the town was one of the things that attracted me. As was a handy bus service although I haven't tried it out yet. I wasn't as worried about the shops as I once would have been as I have been having a delivery of the "heavy stuff" for some years but the coffee shops to meet friends in seems a plus.

Timing: I thought it would be better to do it sooner rather than later - and while I am well. Considering how exhausting it has been on some days so far that seems like a good choice.

Finally, I love no stairs. I expected to be grateful not to be climbing them but there is also the cosy feeling of living in all the rooms and being able to wander from one to another. I hadn't anticipated that.

There's always something gets through. "not very small garden space" should read "very small garden space"

Do not assume that "retirement properties" can be adapted like a normal flat/house if your needs change. Quite often they are less adaptable than standard properties with heavy fire doors that are hard to open if youre frail. Smaller than standard doorways/internal halls that don't fit wheelchairs. No room in bedrooms for hoists etc.

You can stay in your own home for longer if you buy a standard property for the above reasons and more.

The owners dont want you to stay there for long - they make most of their money each time the flats change hands. Once you've bought they already have their eye on the next owner

Make sure there is a demand for retirement flats in your area, otherwise your heirs may have difficulty in selling it, or may have to sell at a loss.

They almost always sell at a loss but thats not the main problem for family: for some (not all) msintenance fees still have to be paid if its vacant and not selling.

The fact that the business model is all about re-sales means they can be more obstructive to adaptations than "normal" freeholders, and if they are allowed (and physically possible, a lot of retirement flat designs prevent standard adaptations) they will often charge for it to be returned to original standard before resale.

I dont agree with getting fixated on protecting inheritances. For me the big con of the places is how unsuitable they are for people once they get ill or older/frailer compaired to standard properties.

GracesGranMK3- I’m interested in your situation as we’ve looked to do something similar in the next five years. I’ve been told that leasehold can be difficult- have you found that or is it early days?

The good ones IMO, Which are VERY rare and expensive, but there is one near me, are ones that last the rest of your lifetime. You can buy a flat as an independant retiree, they are right in the centre of a vibrant suburb with lots to do BUT it "converts" to a nursing home with no move required. Once you need it there are full nursing facilities and nursing staff, which you need have nothing to do with until you need it.

Its a lovely building and the flats are lovely and you wouldnt know it was also a nursing facility.

It is eye wateringly expensive and very high end though.

My mother lived in a sheltered housing flat for almost 15 years. She was very happy there. However it was quite small and I wouldn't want to live in it. The service charges went up every year and some residents found it difficult to afford. I think it did contribute to her living until 93.

I'm not sure what issues you have heard of with the leases of this type of flat Pantglas2. If you can be more specific I can try to answer. I think you have to be careful about all the things we see written about these flats. Service charges will only go up and, as I said, you need to understand the particular sinking fund.

It would be a step too far for me, having visited some friends who live in one ( and hate it.)
If you physically have no choice and it’s a last resort, fair enough.

Merlot can you not find a bungalow with a small garden?

I'm sure we'll be able to find a bungalow with a small garden. There seem to be plenty of them where DD and DSiL have a family home (they're currently in married quarters but will be going back there in two years time)

I toyed with the idea of looking at retirement flats thinking it might cut out the possibility of having to move again if either one of us is left alone and needing support.

I've gone off the idea now.

The council bungalows are a good idea small property with similar age people less cleaning and maintenance in with rent my gran lived in one and was happy dont know if they all gone with wardens though

Wow, some really useful comments everyone. I hear what you are all saying and will definitely find that useful in our property search. I’m only early sixties although my hubby is older. My feeling is that move sooner rather than later as in a few years we won’t even want to move. We need to move financially and to be near my daughter. I also feel that when one of us (hopefully not for some time) they wouldn’t be isolated. The particular block I’ve looked at is near town, very quiet and well kept. It has two large bedrooms and two bathrooms, new fitted kitchen and a beautiful lounge. So although I would be giving up my beautiful bungalow the space would be equally good and we wouldn’t have the worry of outside maintenance going forward. Increasing service charge....definitely something to check out. I spoke to the manager at this particular block and she was very helpful. She said there is a lot the agents don’t tell you but she also said the lease on this block is very good. More to look at and no decision yet!

Thanks for that GracesGranMK3- it is early days for us at the moment but one thing I read a while ago is that the charges for having stuff done (extra sockets, new door bell eg) were extortionate. That you had to use the management company and couldn’t diy - have you found that?

Regardless, I’ll be reading this thread with interest to see how you get on and other folks experience.