The Cape Winelands offers many attractive retirement opportunities

When people decide to retire in the Cape Winelands the beautiful surroundings and peaceful ambience the area has to offer certainly play a major role, but there are also many other factors that make the area attractive.

Pierre Germishuys, Seeff’s MD in Paarl and Stellenbosch, says it is a lifelong dream for many of their clients to retire in the Cape Winelands and they structure their finances through life in such a way that this would be a possibility when it comes to down scaling.

“Factors like security, proximity to medical facilities (even better if there are care facilities on the premises itself) and proximity to shops and churches are equally important considerations.

Many people who buy into a retirement village wish to stay there for the rest of their life so it is important that the facility offers all the things they might need at a later stage like medical care and frail care even though they might not need it now”.

Germishuys continues that buying into a retirement village is a very personal decision and while price range and amenities still remain as important as ever, aspects like spaciousness and features that need a lot of maintenance and upkeep like swimming pools and big gardens generally take a back seat when deciding where to spend one’s golden years.

According to Germishuys some of the most popular retirement villages in Paarl and Stellenbosch at the moment include.

De Oude Renbaan in Southern Paarl: This facility, situated in a picturesque Boland town offers sub-acute care. Sub-acute care is a relatively new and rapidly growing medical care service where it merges the sophisticated technology of a hospital and the efficiency of a skilled nursing facility to reduce the cost of services while maintaining the quality of care. This type of care is ideal for people who have had a hip or knee replacement or serious illness like lung disease or heart failure for instance.

De Oude Renbaan consists of more than a hundred large homes in a leafy estate and units have one, two or three bedrooms.

There are bowls, sprawling gardens, tennis courts, a swimming pool, club house, dining room with meals available by choice and it is located 1 km from Paarl Mall which has 95 shops. Mediclinic, Medicross, Paarl Hospital and Cure Day Clinic are all in a radius of 5-8kms.

De Oude Renbaan is very popular and homes are scarce. Homes sell from R1,3 million for a one bedroom unit and between R2,5m and R3m for a three bedroom unit.

Groenleegte in Northern Paarl: This facility is located within a 1-4 km radius of Mediclinic, Medicross, Paarl Hospital and Cure Day Clinic and is within walking distance to the shops and church.

There are also more than a hundred homes with two and three bedrooms and a frail care unit.

Two bedroom homes sell for around R1.7 million and three bedroom homes are priced between R2.2 and R2.5m.

Paradyskloof Villas Retirement Village in Stellenbosch: This village in Paradyskloof in Stellenbosch has treed gardens and dam, with vineyards and beautiful mountains as a backdrop and is within easy reach of town and the Medclinic hospital.

The larger units are spacious, with three bedrooms and two bathrooms and provide garaging for two cars.  It also provides two bedroom units with two bathrooms and one garage.  A 24h nursing service is available for the residents of the units.  The frail care unit is also available to residents when needed.  Additional extras are a tennis court and a swimming pool.

The prices of the units vary, depending on the size and location within the village.  R4.3 million has recently been achieved for a three bedroom unit of 180m² which also offers two bathrooms and two garages.

Stellenoord Retirement Village in Stellenbosch: Stellenoord in Onder Papegaaiberg Stellenbosch consists of full title property that has one to three bedrooms and range in price from R1,1 million to R2, 6 million. The complex is fenced and has controlled access and is located in an area that has many parks. There is also a privately managed medical centre. While the entry age for residents is 50 years, most residents are older. This village is especially popular among people who already live in Stellenbosch but who want to scale down.

Polla van Wyk, Seeff’s MD in Robertson, says due to the big demand for more secure developments and especially retirement property in this area the Mountain View Retirement Village is now being developed here and building is set to commence soon.

“The Breede River valley only had semi secure developments to date and they are all sold out. The type of buyers who show interested in these developments is especially the elderly who want to scale down in the country”.

Van Wyk continues that the village will consist of 36 homes and 38 apartments. The homes range in size from 120m2 to 150m2 and have two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a double garage or three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a double garage. The apartments range in size from 40m2 (one bedroom and one bathroom) to 52m2 (two bedrooms and one bathroom). Pricing ranges from R895 000 up to R1 975 000.

The village will also have ‘n medical centre, consisting of 16 high care units, a club house, swimming pool and controlled access amongst others and is located in a beautiful vineyard setting.