FAQs

The Sanderson Group is a family-owned business with over 30 years’ experience building and running luxury retirement villages.

Our expertise and passion for building outstanding homes and five-star facilities has lifted the standard of retirement living in New Zealand. A meticulous eye for detail and a knack for picking the very best locations mean Sanderson Group villages are widely regarded as market-leaders and innovators.

Our staff are also genuinely nice people who are looking forward to welcoming you to your new home.

We have developed a range of two and three bedroom architecturally designed homes for our villages.

All our homes feature spacious open-plan living spaces, designer kitchens, double-track curtains, deluxe flooring finishes, gas fireplaces, garaging and ample storage.

We also design our homes for easy living with considerations like extra wide doorways and level entry access throughout. Only high quality fittings and fixtures are used, and the external cladding is chosen to suit the unique character of each village.

A daily schedule of activities is displayed inside our Clubhouses and offer residents a great mix of social and exercise options. You can choose to join activities like mahjong, aqua aerobics classes, table tennis, hobby groups, and more. This is a great way to meet new friends and get the most out of village life. Social outings outside of the village are also organised from time to time.

Our villages are true communities in every sense of the word. Our Clubhouses are a central meeting place where you’ll typically find dining and bar facilities, a purpose-built cinema, dance floor, library, billiard and snooker tables, hobby rooms, and more.

While every village boasts a heated indoor swimming pool and gym, some locations also have dedicated day spas, hair and beauty salons.

Our residents can also enjoy an array of outdoor amenities, including dedicated lawn bowls and croquet lawns on-site.

Of course! You’re welcome to bring your existing family pet with you. If you have more than one pet (or something large or unusual), please get in touch with us first to prevent any issues arising down the track.

Most definitely. That’s why we predominately build two and three bedroom homes – so you can welcome your children, grandchildren and friends who wish to visit at any time of year.

Each village has developed its own internal communication system. Some have a residents’ website, while others produce a regular newsletter. Rest assured you will be kept right up-to-date with all activities, news and developments within your new community.

Most of our villages are located nearby excellent public transport routes so you’ll able to get out and about if you no longer drive or own a vehicle.

Sanderson Group village operator company holds legal title to the land and all homes within our villages. You’ll be invited to purchase an Occupation Right Agreement (ORA) for your home as prescribed in the Retirement Villages Act 2003. This entitles you to occupy your home for life and grants you full access to all our communal facilities. Your ORA will terminate when you leave the village.

We negotiate an agreed ‘entry’ price with you to purchase an ORA before you move in. The cost of this varies from village to village, and will depend
on the size of your home and facilities provided.

A weekly Village Outgoings Payment is charged to cover our operating costs such as rates, water rates, gardening, lawn mowing, facility maintenance, building insurance and so on. This fee is adjusted by no more than the Consumer Price Index (CPI) each year to give you certainty about your living costs.

You’ll be responsible for the private utility charges inside your home such as electricity, natural gas, phone, internet and personal contents insurance. Any repairs or maintenance inside your home is also at your own cost.

A Village Contribution Fee is charged to you or your estate for homes (not apartments). This amount is equal to 30% of your Entry Payment. This fee is charged on your ‘Exit’ date. If your Exit date is less than five years from your ‘Entry’ date, the Village Contribution will be discounted by 6% per year, calculated on a pro rata daily basis. For example, if your Exit date is one year after your Entry date, then your Village Contribution will be 30% less a discount of 24%.

We provide free of charge the services required to on-sell your ORA including administration, marketing and refurbishment (except where there is more than fair wear and tear to the home).

Your entry payment, less any accrued fees will be refunded when your ORA has been resold, however, if your ORA hasn’t been resold within nine months of vacating the home we will pay you interest on
the balance owing.

• No capital loss – we guarantee the amount repaid to you will not be affected by any decline in the value of your ORA due to fluctuating housing market conditions.

• Natural disaster – we guarantee we will pay back your Entry Payment without deducting a village contribution in the event we cannot rebuild your home following a natural disaster.

• No hidden costs – we guarantee there are no hidden costs when we on-sell your ORA. These services are provided free of charge.

• Money back – we guarantee to refund your money if you’re unhappy with your decision to move into your new home in the first six months. If you wish to leave the village, we will resell your ORA and repay your entry fee in full.

• Changing your mind – if you change your mind within 15 working days of signing an ORA, we will cancel the agreement and refund your deposit in full.

• Accrued village contribution and weekly fees – we believe it’s only fair that when you vacate your home your weekly fees and village contribution accrual stops.

Please speak with our friendly sales team. If you would prefer to acquire an ORA for a new home, we will need to discuss availability options with you and the build lead time required to complete your new home.

If you’re interested in a resale property, we need to consider what is available, the outgoing residents’ termination dates and how long it will take to refurbish the home ready for you to move in.