The Commission for Financial Capability is inviting lawyers to participate in a survey on legal advice for intending retirement village residents.

The survey is part of research into how well the requirement for an intending retirement village resident to receive independent legal advice achieves the purposes of the Retirement Villages Act 2003.

A link to the online survey for lawyers is available here. The survey is being carried out by the Centre for Research Evaluation and Social Assessment (CRESA), which will also carry out research with intending residents and recent residents in villages.

Matters covered by the survey of lawyers are:

• The advice which lawyers give to intending retirement village residents.
• The aspects of retirement village law that lawyers feel comfortable about giving advice.
• Whether lawyers see a need for intending residents to be advised by others, such as financial advisers, accountants or insurers.
• Whether lawyers would like more training and/or resources to support and enhance their provision of advice to intending residents.

"Many older people considering retirement village living are overwhelmed by the information they need to consider, especially when comparing retirement villages to other options, or understanding contractual and financial implications of an occupation right agreement in a particular village," says Troy Churton, National Manager of the Commission for Financial Capability's Retirement Village work.

"We expect lawyers will have a range of valuable experience and insights into advising elderly clients thinking of living in retirement villages."