Victorian Greens commit to retirement housing review ahead of state election

The Victorian Greens are the only party that have committed to a review of the retirement housing sector in the next political term.

Ahead of this weekend's state election, the Consumer Action Law Centre has been lobbying political parties to commit to a review of the Retirement Villages Act 2010 and retirement housing sector more generally.

According to the Consumer Action Law Centre, the major parties are yet to promise any reform or review of retirement housing policy. Neither Victorian Labor nor Liberal have advertised any policies regarding retirement housing ahead of the election.

The Greens, however, have promised to launch a parliamentary inquiry into the housing retirement sector and act on subsequent recommendations.

They claim their actions will "ensure older people are not ripped off".

"The Greens will act on the recommendations of the inquiry to reform retirement housing legislation to ensure it reflects the diversity of retirement housing types and includes proper consumer protections, dispute resolution procedures, fair pricing, and consistent, simplified management standards and regulations across the sector", states the Victorian Greens website.

The Consumer Action Law Centre claims current retirement housing practices include "overly complex contract terms and unfair fee structures".

Denise Boyd, director of Policy and Campaigns at Consumer Action, said: "We've heard from residents who'd chosen certain retirement accommodation because it offered stability for their later years. But, in fact, many contracts include deferred management fees of up to 40% of the total cost. Hiding the cost of accommodation in high fees to be paid upon departure is unfair – these costs can surprise family members or limit aged care options when leaving the retirement accommodation."

She also said the centre has seen contracts requiring residents to pay for capital improvements when they leave their rented retirement accommodation.

"Refreshing the properties is reasonable, but this is being used by village owners to charge departing residents upwards of $50,000 for entirely new kitchens and bathrooms," said Boyd.

"These are capital works, not refurbishment, and should be paid for by the owners, not residents."

According to Boyd, personal briefings with Liberal and Labor Party members did not result in any commitments to improve the sector after the election.

"This issue affects thousands of Victorian voters and we'd hoped all parties would make clear statements of intent to sort out this unacceptable and unfair situation," she said.