In today's Spice World, it is easy to dismiss all that went before it, difficult to imagine any one pop phenomenon being able to inspire the same kind of national - if not quite global - loyalty With pop music it's always Year Zero. Problems are rare, but with new developers entering the market buyers should ask solicitors to pay particular attention to conditions of resale, and maintenance and service charges, including exactly what they cover.Age Concern's handbook, A Buyer's Guide to Sheltered Housing, covers purchase options, charges and legal aspects of buying, as well as other relevant topics.McCarthy & Stone: 0800 919132; Peverel Services Ltd: 01425 638863; Renaissance Retirement: 0800 216754; Elderly Accommodation Council: 0181 742 1182; HARPS helpline: 0800 592605; Age Concern's Handbook (pounds 4.95): 0181 679 8000 or through libraries.. We haven't got the worry of looking after the garden and we like the security. When my wife accidentally hit the panic button, we received an instant response, so we know that works too!"However, this may not the case in all developments.
Problems with absentee or unsympathetic wardens, or unreasonable service charges may only be solved by taking action, but reputable management companies should be members of the Association of Retirement Housing Managers (ARHM) and thus bound by a strict code of practice. "We had a dream bungalow in the Cotswolds," says Mr Pickering, "but moving here has contributed to my wife's recovery. I thought it would be better to get somewhere smaller to cut down the housework. The building is in keeping with the Prince's architectural ideas, with hand-carved local stone. Prices range from pounds 80,000 to pounds 180,000, from Renaissance Retirement.McCarthy & Stone has until now concentrated on building standard retirement homes for those with modest means. Its new "Signature Collection", however, provides luxury two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartments, in Leeds, from pounds 115,000.The same company's development, Nevyll Court, in Thorpe Bay, Essex, has flats from pounds 64,950, one of which Ronald and Dorothy Pickering chose after Dorothy's stroke in December last year. "We get about 150 enquiries a week, both from fit, able retired people, as well as relatives trying to find a suitable property for a parent suffering from Alzheimer's disease or Parkinson's disease, for example," says David Wagstaffe.
From its contacts with some 32,000 developments, it aims to match enquirers to the right accommodation.In Chingford, London E4, one bedroom flats in Homebush House, a development of 57 flats, start at pounds 38,000, with a resident warden, communal lounge, laundry and guest accommodation. In Weybridge, Surrey, similar flats start at pounds 63,000, both available through Peverel Services. For something rather different in a retirement development are apartments in a newly-built miniature "French chateau" in Poundbury, the Prince of Wales' vision of a village on the outskirts of Dorchester. This is useful when buying a secondhand property which is being sold privately rather than through the developer. The service is free to buyers, with a two per cent charge to vendors.The Elderly Accommodation Council provides information on all aspects of retirement housing. If the property is not directed exclusively to the retirement market, the vendor misses out." What tends to happen at present is that the original developer, who is still the freeholder, markets the resale to enquirers.Help the Aged now runs a property service (HARPS), which can computer- match buyers with properties for sale. "In terms of resales, there have been hitches, not least because estate agents have not yet adapted to what is, after all, a growth market," says David Wagstaffe, of the Elderly Accommodation Council.