See the differences to select the lifestyle that best suits you
If you’re thinking about the best place to live in your retirement, you’ll no doubt have come across the terms “aged care” and “retirement village”. But what is the difference between the two? Will one option suit your needs better than the other? Or is there really no difference at all?
Clearly, it’s so important to weigh up whether a retirement village or aged care home is the best choice for you (or your loved ones if you’re helping them to decide). And the answer is yes, each option offers unique benefits that appeal to specific needs. So it’s important to understand the key differences.
Let’s take a look at retirement villages and aged care, to help make things clearer as you start planning your retirement.
What’s it like living in a retirement village?
If you’d like to spend your retirement years with people of a similar age who are at a similar stage in their life, retirement villages can be perfect. They offer an independent and flexible lifestyle if you don’t require additional living assistance.
As you can imagine, the retirement village lifestyle will suit you if you enjoy getting out and about or entertaining friends and family at home. You can travel regularly if you wish and come home to an active, social community.
Retirement villages today offer luxurious amenities such as swimming pools, a gym, theatre, and well-appointed dining facilities that often host a range of live entertainment. Social coordinators organise activities for residents that keep their social calendars as full as they would like.
Home maintenance and landscaping services may be included in your fees or be offered at an additional cost.
Retirement villages provide the ideal environment for people who want to make the most of their golden years and are healthy and active enough to be able to live independently. Models for retirement villages vary, as do the fees and services dependent on which type you choose. You need to weigh up the financial benefits and pitfalls of each before deciding which is best.
What can you expect when living in aged care?
By contrast to retirement villages, aged care facilities (also known as aged care homes) include some level of supported living and care. They provide an accommodation option if you are unable to live independently, such as needing assistance with personal care or feeding.
Aged care facilities are often government funded and may require you to have an ACAT or ACAS assessment (Aged Care Assessment.) The assessment takes into consideration several factors including health, medical history, physical needs, psychological requirements, social needs, and any other special needs. This assessment helps you or your loved one to access the right level of care.
Depending on their health and mobility, residents have meals in their room or a shared dining facility at set times throughout the day.
If you’re requiring daily care, an aged care home can provide a safe, comfortable environment that can meet and adapt to your individual needs for the years to come.
Come and see Kensington Gardens retirement villages for yourself
If you’re looking for fulfilling independent retirement living, Kensington Gardens offers a wonderful lifestyle for you to come home to. We invite you and your loved ones to visit our retirement communities at Albury and Shepparton.
Kensington Gardens provides luxurious, secure, community living, centred around a stunning Residents’ Clubhouse and an impressive range of indoor and outdoor activities.
Come and meet some of our residents and ask them why they love living here. Many will tell you living at Kensington Gardens is how retirement living should be – and they wish they had moved sooner!
To arrange a personal tour – on your own or with your family – please call us at Albury on 02 6049 3100 or Shepparton on 03 5820 5100 or connect with us online to book a time. We look forward to meeting you!
