Retirement village ‘spot checks’ protect residents and their families, says new NSW Minister for Innovation and Better Regulation

Kevin Anderson (pictured) was sworn in as the new Minister earlier this month as part of the NSW Liberal Government’s new-look cabinet – and is promptly following Kathryn Greiner’s plan for increased regulation.

He will replace Matt Kean who served in the position for over two years and has now moved on to a new role as Minister for Energy and Environment.

In his first announcement as Minister, Mr Anderson has revealed the completion of a wave of spot checks conducted by Fair Trading inspectors in retirement villages across metropolitan Sydney to ensure their compliance with NSW regulation and legislation.

“Residents of NSW deserve greater peace of mind when their loved ones to buy into a retirement village, which is why we are working harder to not only carry out more spot inspections of villages, but also to educate residents about their rights”, he said.

Mr Anderson said inspectors found operators to be “generally compliant” with the law – finding only minor issues relating to administrative areas.

“These spots check are just a part of our plan to reform the industry and provide a fairer system to residents in NSW . . . We will be introducing annual contract check-up meetings with operators, new requirements for emergency plans and a new auditor appointment process in this year alone.”

Mr Anderson says the Government will also move to introduce a 42-day limit on the length of time villages can charge for general services after the departure of a resident, and mandatory sale or buy back periods for owners who want to sell their property and leave a retirement village in NSW.

Fair Trading will continue its routine inspections of retirement villages across NSW.

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