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Elderly parents
Original poster

McCarthy and Stone rent or buy?

32 replies

urgen · 01/10/2022 00:25

Whilst we aren’t quite there yet isn’t it a no brainier to actually rent in a retirement village. Thinking of my 90 year old Mum. She walks with a frame outside the house but otherwise ok.

I hear so many horror stories about people who buy whose family struggle to sell them when the old person passes on. That and the maintenance charges.

We would have to sell her London house and then fund the rental through the equity.

OP posts:
Toooldtoworry · 01/10/2022 10:01

Definitely rent. I'm South East and my Nans friend owned one before she died and it took her daughter 3 years to sell after she passsd, and she had to reduce the price significantly to get it to sell.

DreadingWinter · 01/10/2022 09:58

Avoid. My DF bought a flat in one of these blocks 30 years ago. He absolutely hated living among all elderly people. One week there were three wakes in the communal lounge. He sold at a tiny profit, but had to pay one per cent back to the freeholders. He moved to an ordinary home with mixed age groups and was much happier. The retirement flats still sell for virtually the same as they did when he bought his. The monthly service charges were as high as a mortgage. I'm glad, OP, that you have decided against.

Original poster
urgen · 01/10/2022 09:14

Thank you all. Just what I thought. Renting sounds the way to go.

OP posts:
Whatevergetsyouthroughthenight · 01/10/2022 00:33

Rent. You are liable for the service charge until you sell and there are way too many second hand retirement flats on the market. If your DM needs a full time care home in future, you might struggle to pay for it with her capital tied up in a flat you can’t sell quickly. There were some McCarthy and Stone ones where my DF moved to that were reselling for tens of thousands less than they had been purchased for. Have a look at the development you are interested in (if not pretty new) for previous sold prices on rightmove/zoopla or see if you can find a similar development nearby.

kitcat15 · 01/10/2022 00:33

They actually go down in price every time they sell round here in NW

msbevvy · 01/10/2022 00:32

I live in the southeast and I see the same retirement properties advertised for sale for years. I would choose the rental option for that reason.

Orangesare · 01/10/2022 00:28

I think it depends where they live in the uk.
i live in the north (affluent bit so house prices are really high) and retirement property takes ages and ages to sell. A relative owns a retirement flat in southeast and they sell like hot cakes. It is close to the town centre though.