The Retirement Villages Act 2003 — the legal framework underpinning retirement villages in New Zealand — has been under formal review since late 2022. The review, led by Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), seeks to assess whether the Act, its regulations, and its codes remain fit for purpose given how much the retirement-village sector has evolved.
At the outset, HUD envisaged a comprehensive examination covering all phases of retirement village living — from “moving in,” through “living in,” to “moving on.” That included reviewing disclosure statements and Occupation Right Agreements (ORAs), the resale process, the rights and obligations of residents and operators, standards of care and facility maintenance, governance and oversight of retirement villages, and the interface with aged-care facilities.
Objectives of the review were laid out clearly: ensuring adequate consumer protections for residents and prospective residents; balancing the rights and responsibilities of both residents and village operators; and preserving the continued viability of the retirement-village sector while giving older New Zealanders a real choice in retirement housing.
In August 2023 HUD published a discussion paper and invited submissions. The consultation closed on 20 November 2023.
A total of 11,114 submissions were received from residents, family members, operators, advocacy groups and other stakeholders.
Submissions generally supported the review’s aims — many commenting that the Act was now over two decades old and increasingly misaligned with modern practices and expectations.
In October 2024, the Government announced it would narrow the scope of the review to focus on three priority areas — those deemed to have the most immediate impact on retirement-village residents.
The three priorities are:
· Maintenance and repairs of operator-owned chattels and fixtures (rather than leaving residents liable for upkeep).
· Complaints and dispute-resolution processes — aiming to replace or overhaul the current (often criticised as overly complex) complaints framework with a more effective, transparent scheme.
· Ensuring timely capital repayments when residents exit a village — including potential reforms to stop weekly fees continuing after a unit is vacated, and possibly mandating repayment of the resident’s capital within a reasonable timeframe.
Topics that were initially considered but are now out of scope include minimum building standards, additional regulatory compliance or monitoring requirements, and broader systemic reforms that would involve complex oversight changes.
As of March 2025, HUD has significantly accelerated its timeline: Cabinet decisions on legislative changes are now expected between November and December 2025, with drafting of amendments potentially to begin in early 2026.
An amendment bill could then be introduced in mid-2026.
The narrowing of the review’s scope and extension of its timeframe has drawn criticism from advocates for residents, who argue that many of the most serious structural issues will remain unaddressed. Stakeholder groups and consumer advocates continue to press for stronger enforcement, clearer contracts and fairer repayment timetables.
Still, the focus on priority concerns — maintenance obligations, dispute resolution and capital repayments — represents a tangible step toward improving fairness and clarity in the retirement-
In all, the review reflects a significant shift — from a static 2003 framework to one actively reconsidering how retirement villages operate and how older New Zealanders are protected in them. While the narrowed scope and delayed timeframe may disappoint some, the coming legislative amendments offer a real opportunity to improve key protections for thousands of residents and their families.