Life Lease How To Lower Your Rent & Live In A Luxury Retirement Community


There is a lot to consider when you are deciding when is it time to leave the older family house and move into a new retirement community.

Lifestyle Consultant providing Life Lease housing option to seniors

Location, quality, and comfort should rank high on your list. As you age, additional services and amenities, such as a dining room, maid service, social events, fitness activities and programs, and later on, care services become increasingly important.

With additional services, however, can come additional costs. According to CMHC's Senior Housing Report for 2016, senior housing rents are on the rise in both Edmonton and Calgary.

In Edmonton, a two+ bedroom had an average rent of $3,709 in 2016, which was up $167 per month from 2015. Calgary reported the highest rates in Alberta, on average, with nearly 70% of standard rental spaces asking for a rent of $3,000 or more. The rest of Alberta, including central communities such as Red Deer, Lacombe and Rocky Mountain House, saw a decline in average rent prices, a drop of $47 per month, down to $3,287 in 2016.

So, how does one reduce monthly rental rates, while ensuring a comfortable living space and quality care when you need it?

The Benefits Of Community

Choosing an active retirement community is all about lifestyle. Because the market is now offering a diverse range of housing choice, ranging from active adult condo, to luxury rental, to independent living, to assisted living, with a variety of supportive services, you can choose the lifestyle that suites your needs, now and in the future.

One local Alberta company that specializes in fun and flexibility is Christenson Communities. Each community offers bright, well designed, condominium quality homes with full kitchens, balconies, in suite laundry and a variety of floor plans. These low maintenance, energy efficient buildings offer easy accessibility to shops, restaurants, parks and essential services.

Fun, active and social, these retirement communities provide a modern twist on old-fashioned values and focus on peace of mind for our residents and their families. A choice of rental and life lease options keeps your dream community affordable and accessible.

Monthly living expenses are comprised of net rent, which pays for the cost of the physical structure, and monthly operating costs, which cover heat, water, sewer, gas, power, maintenance, tax and insurance. Operating costs are inclusive; you do not even have to change a light bulb!

Meals in the dining room are optional in most Christenson communities; allowing you to travel, entertain in your own home, and save money.

What is Life Lease

Christenson Communities offers an option to reduce your monthly living expenses, a popular and proven concept called Life Lease.

Life Lease provides you with an ideal balance between the certainty of owning, and the flexibility of renting.

Life Lease permits residents to use the equity in their current older home, or in other investments, to reduce the net rent portion of their monthly living costs. Your net rent is reduced at 6 to 8% per year on the capital invested; a savings of roughly $2,000 per month before income tax, considerably more after tax.

If you make a 0% loan to the project, you pay zero net rent; you pay only the monthly operating costs. Your investment is secured by a mortgage against the retirement community.

A 100% of value Life Lease means you enjoy the security of never having a rent increase, only paying the actual monthly operating costs for as long as you live in your Christenson home. This allows you to bring your monthly living expenses in line with your monthly income.

With a 100% Life Lease Loan, your net rent and monthly operating costs on a luxury condominium quality unit can be under $1,000 per month.

Under Christenson's industry leading Life Lease and Optional Loan Agreements, Residents can stay for life, or move with 90 days notice to vacate.

The funds invested in the Life Lease Loan are returned to the Resident, or to their estate, less an 8% Release Fee. This fee covers marketing and minor renovation costs. It's a one-time charge to you, regardless of how long you live there.

Be A Part Of Our Community

If you would like to find out first hand what a Life Lease arrangement could mean for you, please contact one of our Lifestyle Consultants at the community in the location of your choice to view a show suite and the amenities.

If you, or a family member, need supportive services, a Wellness Navigator will help to answer your questions.


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