It’s often assumed that when people move into a retirement village, they stay close to the old family home. Many in the industry will tell you that a move of less than 10kms is the norm.

Research by McCrindle Baynes for villages.com.au show that is simply not the case.

It’s true that times have changed. In a pre-GFC property market, it was relatively easy to get what you wanted when selling your home. And if you wanted a little more cash to ensure a comfortable retirement, all you had to do was wait until the right someone paid the right price.

Today that’s not so easy. To get some extra cash for comfortable retirement, you may have to compromise when selling the house. Likewise when buying a new home in a village. One of those factors might be moving out of the old neighbourhood.

McCrindle Baynes conducted research with over 10,000 people living in retirement villages. The results showed that 44% of people living in a village had moved more than 20kms to get there, including 41% who had moved over 50kms.

That’s a far cry from the 10km generally assumed.

But if you consider 97% of those respondents are more than happy with retirement village lifestyle, for the vast majority of people, moving isn’t a problem. In fact, for many it’s a benefit as they make new friends in a new and vibrant village community.

After all, 82% of people who are now living in a village want you to join them there, rather than watch you rattle around the old family house.

Buying your new home in a retirement village is a different proposition than it was pre-GFC, however it’s one that’s well within reach.