News

Pensioner provides' Comfort and Smile' to older renters

Eighty year old Retirement Village resident June Walkeden knows its tough paying bills on a pension, so she spends her free time hand making quilts to keep older people who have been at risk of homelessness warm.

Shocking New Census Data Shows Most Older Renters in Severe Poverty

Shocking new data from the ABS Census shows that 84% of single older* private renters in the Greater Melbourne region are in housing stress,  and the majority (54%) are in severe stress paying more than half their income in rent, forcing many older people into abject poverty and ill health. Current trends suggest this situation is only going to get worse with an ageing population and more people expected to be retiring in rental housing in the future rather than home ownership.

 

Innovative Service Houses its 600th Client During Homelessness Week

Homelessness Week 2017 focuses on Innovation and Action and by the end of this week, a Melbourne-based Innovation Action Project will house its 600th older person. The Home at Last Service is the only one in Australia that focuses on preventing homelessness in over 55’s.

Calls for federal inquiry into retirement villages amid Aveo scandal

The Sydney Morning Herald
-Adele Ferguson, Sarah Danckert, Fergus Hunter

"In a series of stories, Fairfax Media and ABC's Four Corners uncovered questionable practices by one of the biggest listed operators, Aveo, while it was raking in huge profits.

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Government must not lose retirement housing momentum

Four corners ran a fantastic episode last night on dodgy retirement housing opporator AVEO, and other articles have recently been published that expose many of the problems residents of retirement housing have been facing for a long time – complicated contracts, unfair fees and issues with management. Unfortunately, these are not isolated problems with one operator, they occur across the whole of the retirement housing industry, and we must continnue to push for reform.

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Retirement Villages cashing in on our most vulnerable

26th June 2017

The Age - Adele Ferguson, Sarah Danckert

Despite a groundswell of complaints, problems in retirement villages remain rife, particularly at Aveo, where even the savviest customers can end up defeated. So who’s in charge of the sector and how accountable are they?

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The Price of Freedom

The Age

24th June 2017

"Its slick marketing promises a safe and sound place to live yet retirement village operator Aveo is making a fortune by ripping off Australians through complex contracts and eye-watering exit fees"...

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