At Ocean Gardens, we understand the significance of your decision, but rest assured – while this is new to you, we’ve been guiding people thought life’s next stage since the 1980s.
What we’ve learnt in our time is that knowledge is what really matters. When you have a clear mind about what you’re giving up and what you’re gaining, making the move, when you’re ready, will feel right.
We know you have a lot of questions, so we’ve answered a list of the most commonly asked below. We hope we can shine a light on this exciting time for you and change your view on life’s next stage.
Ocean Gardens is a retirement village which was established more than 30 years ago. It is owned and operated by Ocean Gardens (Inc) which is an association incorporated in Western Australia under the Associations Incorporations Act 1987.
Since its establishment, Ocean Gardens has maintained a reputation for financial stability and security and has demonstrated very prudent management together with a high level of governance.
Operating the village is the sole activity of Ocean Gardens (Inc). As a not-for-profit organisation, all surpluses from operations are reinvested into the village for the benefit of all current and future residents.
Ocean Gardens is governed by a Board comprised of six independent, duly qualified, and experienced company directors. The day-to-day management of the village is the responsibility of the General Manager.
Ocean Gardens has 235 units consisting of 163 villas and 72 apartments within the village. Our villas are semi-detached, freestanding dwellings, whilst our apartments have internal communal areas with easy access to common areas and care. Our premium apartments are located in a high-rise building with spectacular views of the Indian Ocean.
The village community centre, and all its associated recreational facilities, are available for the use of all residents.
Anyone who can live independently and is over 55 years of age can live in a retirement village, whether you are retired or still working.
As an approved home care provider under the Aged Care Act 1997, we can provide government funded Home Care Package support, and self-funded home care services in your own home, on a ‘fee for service’ basis. You are able to choose from a wide variety of services individually tailored to your specific needs.
Our apartments and villas are occupied on a ‘lease for life’ basis, so while you will not own your home outright, you are granted exclusive occupancy for your life. When you pay an entry price for a villa or an apartment you actually pay a ‘lease bond’ and you (and each resident nominated in the agreement) are granted a ‘lease for life’ for the exclusive occupancy of your villa or apartment, together with the right to use (for the lifetime of the last surviving resident), on a shared basis with all other residents, all common areas and village facilities.
Your Residence Contract grants you the exclusive use of your villa or apartment for your lifetime, or, where more than one resident is a party to the Contract, during the lifetime of the surviving resident.
You may terminate your lease (at any time) by giving written notice of your wish to do so. Your villa or apartment is then prepared for re-lease and every effort is made to sell it as soon as is reasonably practicable for the best market value.
Should you require assistance in the payment of aged care fees Ocean Gardens can assist. Details of these arrangements can be found in your Residence Contract, or are available from our Sales Manager.
The costs payable by the resident to enter Ocean Gardens are limited to:
- The entry price of your chosen villa or apartment (referred to in the Residence Contract as the lease bond). No stamp duty is payable on the transaction because it is formally a lease.
- The Residence Contract may include a carport for your exclusive use in addition to your exclusive use of your villa or apartment.
- An administration fee to cover the cost of processing the Residence Contract, preparing statements and completing settlement.
- The cost of connecting to all of your desired utilities including gas, electricity, telephone and internet.
Yes you can, but these changes must first be approved by the General Manager to ensure the relevant building standards and regulations are met.
When leaving, you pay a Building Infrastructure Fee (BIF) and a Village Amenity Fee (VAF), which is calculated as a percentage of the purchase price paid by the incoming resident.
The Building Infrastructure Fee is calculated daily on the entry price paid for the lease bond. It is capped at 24.5% after five years. The Village Amenity Fee is calculated daily on the entry price paid for the lease bond and is capped at 14.5% after five years.
Any capital gain increase during the time of the lease is shared 61% to the outgoing resident and 39% to Ocean Gardens.
The primary purpose of the BIF and the VAF is to contribute to the daily and ongoing operations and long term maintenance of the village including common areas.
Depending on your personal financial circumstances, you may choose that these fees be paid partially or fully upfront, or settled through your final outgoing payment when leaving the village.
Yes, all of our common areas are available to book out for private functions if you are wanting to host friends or family for special events. You will just need to book through reception and make sure you clean up afterwards.
Yes you can, this is your home. Friends and family are welcome to stay with you on a ‘short stay’ basis (for a maximum of eight weeks per annum, and no more than four weeks continuous).
Other residents appreciate knowing their neighbours, so in the interest of maintaining harmony within the village we ask that you let the General Manager know when you will have guests staying.
Apartments and villas are allocated car parking which will be specified in your Residence Contract. Visitor car parking is also available throughout the village.
Yes, but to ensure the comfort of all residents, pets must be approved by the General Manager before you move into Ocean Gardens. New residents may be permitted to bring their present pet with them, however approval may be withdrawn if a pet proves to be a nuisance.
The Operating Cost Contribution, which residents pay monthly, provides for the following services:
- Use of all community facilities at the village, including croquet lawn, swimming pool, gym, putting green, bowling green, restaurant, lawns, gardens, roads, paths and external lighting
- External maintenance of apartments, villas and premium apartments
- Maintenance of the village grounds including all gardens
- Administration, management and 24 hour emergency call system facility, as well as security within the village
- All local authority services including library, refuse collection, etc
Additional optional services are provided for residents at Ocean Gardens on a ‘fee for service’ basis.
These services include laundry, cleaning, programmed personal care, shopping, restaurant dining or meal delivery, hairdressers, podiatrist, kiosk, photocopying and secretarial services.
New residents are provided with a comprehensive ‘Welcome Pack’ describing all the amenities and services available and where applicable, the charges. These details are contained in the sales material included in this folder.
At Ocean Gardens we have a 24-hour care service and emergency call system monitored by our own Care Support Services team. All the costs of monitoring and maintaining the emergency call system are included in the operating costs.
The first 30 minutes assistance provided in any emergency is at no charge, any time beyond this is chargeable. Residents who activate the emergency call system will receive an account for services provided by staff responding to the call.
If immediate hospitalisation or nursing care is required and a doctor is not present, the ambulance would normally take you to the closest public hospital, which is either Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital or Royal Perth Hospital.
In the case of hospitalisation or the need for nursing care, subject to all of the circumstances, Ocean Gardens may give approval for an extended absence provided the operating costs are paid as they become due and payable. Your villa or apartment remains in your name until your Residence Contract is formally terminated.
Transperth Bus Services are available on Kalinda Drive and The Boulevard and taxis are available upon request. There are a number of designated pick-up points around the village to which taxis can be called.
Ocean Gardens also has a bus which is used for outings, social purposes and transport of a similar nature. There are scheduled trips to Karrinyup and Floreat Forum shopping centres. A small charge is made for all trips as the bus service is self-funding.
Ocean Gardens also has a shared vehicle available for use by residents, free of charge. If you do not drive, resident volunteer drivers are available by prior booking.
Your Residence Contract grants you the exclusive use of your villa or apartment for your lifetime, or, where more than one resident is a party to the Contract, during the lifetime of the surviving resident.
The operations budget is designed so that the Common Service Fees paid by all residents over the year will meet the operating costs. Under the Retirement Village Act 1992, should any surplus arise it must be incorporated into the following year’s Operating Costs budget.
However, the residents may, by a special resolution, approve the application of the whole or part of the budget surplus for any other purpose or purposes that is or are generally of benefit to the residents of Ocean Gardens.
If there is a deficit, then the surplus from previous years can be applied to address this deficit.
Each month from the start of your lease until three months after termination, residents will be required to pay to Ocean Gardens the Operating Cost Contribution attributable to their particular villa or apartment. The operating costs of the village comprise those items of expenditure as defined in the Residence Contract and are largely regulated by the Retirement Villages Act 1992.
The Annual Budget is prepared in consultation with representatives from the Residents’ Association and recovery rates are prescribed to yield the estimated cost of maintaining and running the village.
Rates payable to the local council and any other rates and taxes imposed, are payable directly by each resident separately.
Ocean Gardens insures the buildings and common areas of the village, the cost of which is included in the Operating Cost Contribution. Residents are required to cover the cost of contents or personal valuables insurance to cover personal belongings, furnishings and valuables inside their home.
Ocean Gardens is fully insured for replacement as a result of any of the prescribed risks, and the residents’ rights relating to destruction or damage to a villa or apartment is outlined in Clause 13 of the Residence Contract.
Yes. It is a formal prerequisite to supply a letter from your General Practitioner stating that you are capable of living independently.
As a resident you can speak to the relevant staff member or the General Manager of the village, or you can fill in a Resident Feedback Form available from reception.
There is also a Residents’ Association which serves the interest of all residents, or you may choose to institute a formal dispute resolution and complaint process via the relevant state regulatory authority.
Yes. Ocean Gardens has been granted accreditation by the Australian Retirement Village Accreditation Scheme Standards (ARVAS).
Residents individually pay charges for gas, electricity, telephone, internet, council rates and charges, pay television and other services consumed in their own villa or apartment including connection and disconnection charges.
These outgoings will vary depending upon your personal use of electricity, gas, telephone, internet and pay television.
Note: subject to meeting eligibility criteria you may be entitled to a senior’s discount off these rates.
You must keep your villa or apartment and its fixtures and fittings in good tenantable repair, fair wear and tear accepted. Ocean Gardens is responsible for all external painting and maintenance, the costs of which are provided for in your fees.
Ocean Gardens is also responsible for all structural repairs and alterations except where caused by the neglect or default of the resident or his or her visitors. At the termination of the lease, Ocean Gardens bears the full cost of refurbishment, the degree of which will depend on the age and state of your villa or apartment at the time and also will depend on the current market conditions.
To keep our buildings and grounds in the best condition, and be able to offer all our amenities, residents contribute to the longer term building maintenance, common area upkeep and additional amenities and operations offered within the village via the Building Infrastructure Fee (BIF) and the Village Amenity Fee (VAF). These are calculated at a rate of 4.9% pa of your lease bond (capped after five years), and 2.9% pa of your lease bond (capped after five years) respectively.
We are pleased to offer considerable flexibility in payment of these longer term fees. So depending on your personal financial circumstances, you may choose to have these fees paid partially or fully upfront, or settled finally through your outgoing payment when your lease is sold and you leave the village.
You may make an offer to lease subject to the sale of your present property. Adequate time will be allowed for you to sell your current home. The process for purchasing a ‘lease for life’ at Ocean Gardens is detailed below.
