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About

Retirement Villages Association of New Zealand

  1. Full Name (Trading Name): Retirement Villages Association of New Zealand Inc (RVA)

  1. Year Founded: 1989

  1. Entity Type: Incorporated Society (Non-profit Membership Association)

  1. NZBN (NZ Business No.): 9429042709879 (as listed on incorporated societies register)

  1. Company Number: 435511 (as listed on incorporated societies register)

  1. Industry Classification: S955 – Civic/Professional Association (Sector Lobby & Accreditation Body for Retirement Villages) (Functions also classified under Government Relations).

  1. Industry Sector: Retirement Villages & Senior Housing (aged care housing industry). Represents property developers/operators of retirement communities.

  1. Head Office (Physical): Level 13, 342 Lambton Quay, Wellington 6011, New Zealand (Previously Level 11, Petherick Tower, 38–42 Waring Taylor St, Wellington).

  1. Postal Address: PO Box 25-022, Featherston Street, Wellington 6146, New Zealand

  1. Contact Phone: +64 4 499 7090

  1. Website: www.retirementvillages.org.nz

  1. Social Media: LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/retirement-villages-association-nz-ltd/?originalSubdomain=nz) Facebook (as “Retirement Life NZ”), Instagram (retirementvillagesnz) – Note: Official website links to Facebook/Instagram.

  1. Key Shareholders/Owners: Not applicable – RVA is a non-profit membership association with no shareholders (funded by member fees).

  1. Membership: ~407 retirement villages operated by ~120 member entities, covering ~50,000 residents. RVA represents more than 95% of the registered retirement village industry by unit number.

  1. Leadership (Current):

    • President: Graham Wilkinson (CEO of Generus Living Group) – longest-serving RVA Executive member since 1997.

    • Executive Director: Michelle Palmer (appointed Sept 2024).

    • Independent Board Member: Hon. Jo Goodhew (former NZ Cabinet Minister, appointed 2022 to represent residents’ perspective).

  1. Key Staff: RVA operates with a small staff (2–10 employees). Michelle Palmer leads the secretariat; other staff include policy advisors and member support roles.

  1. Past Leadership:

    • Former Executive Director: John Collyns (served 2007–Aug 2024) – credited with 17 years of sector leadership.

    • Earlier ED: Petrina Turner (circa early-2000s).

    • Past Presidents drawn from major operators (e.g. Graham Wilkinson, who remains President).

  1. Activities & Disclosures: The RVA’s core mandate is industry self-regulation, advocacy, and member services. It runs an accreditation/audit scheme for member villages (required by law every 3 years), hosts annual conferences and regional forums, and lobbies on policy and legislative matters affecting retirement villages.

  1. Industry Representation: Represents retirement village operators, developers, and managers. Members range from large publicly listed companies to church and charity operators. The RVA represents more than 95% of the registered retirement village industry by unit number, effectively unifying industry positions on regulatory issues.

  1. Political Engagements: Regularly makes submissions to central and local government. Examples include formal submissions, appearances before Parliamentary select committees and joint submissions with member companies on local council planning policies. The RVA also engages with the Retirement Commissioner and agencies via a government-convened stakeholder forum on retirement village issues.

  1. Affiliations & Sponsorships: Funded and helped establish the Retirement Village Residents Association (RVR) National Residents’ Advisory Council in 2019, providing financial support while asserting the council’s independence. The RVA’s annual conferences are sponsored by industry vendors (e.g. construction, healthcare suppliers) and often feature political guest speakers. RVA itself is not known to donate to political parties (no political donations disclosed in public records – Data Not Found), focusing its influence through lobbying and public relations.

  1. Controversies & Criticisms: The RVA has faced scrutiny over potential conflicts of interest in its self-regulatory role and resistance to stronger regulation. Critics highlight that the RVA’s member-run audit regime equates to operators “monitoring one another” rather than independent oversight. Consumer advocates and the Retirement Commissioner have accused the industry of unfair contract terms – e.g. lengthy delays repaying exited residents and lack of capital gain sharing – and argue the RVA has been opaque and defensive in addressing these issues. In 2023, the Commerce Commission warned several RVA member companies for marketing that “risked misleading” residents about care services, fueling debate on whether self-regulation under RVA has been sufficient. No legal violations by the RVA itself have been documented, but it has consistently been at the center of industry controversies regarding resident rights and transparency.

  1. Financials & Disclosures: Any fields or data not listed above were not available in public documentation and are marked as “Data Not Found.” The RVA does not publicly disclose financial statements (annual revenue, budgets) or detailed lobbying expenditure, so those remain opaque.

Sources:

• Eldernet. (2013). Retirement Villages Association (RVA) – At a Glance. Eldernet Directory. Retrieved from https://www.eldernet.co.nz/Facilities/Formal_groups__organisations/Retirement_Villages_Association_RVA/Service/DisplayService/FaStID/10718

• LinkedIn. (2023). Retirement Villages Association NZ Inc – About Us. LinkedIn.com. Retrieved from https://nz.linkedin.com/company/retirement-villages-association-nz-ltd

• Katalyst Business. (2025). Retirement Villages Association of New Zealand Inc – Company Profile (excerpt). Retrieved from https://www.katalystbusiness.co.nz/business-profiles/679898.html

• BusinessCheck NZ. (n.d.). Community Support Services ITO Ltd – Shareholders. Retrieved from https://www.businesscheck.co.nz/ltd/9429034105412/ (lists RVA as shareholder)

• Residents’ Council (RVResidents). (2020). About the Retirement Village Residents’ Council – FAQ. Retrieved from https://www.residentscouncil.org.nz/about-us

• NBR - National Business Review. (2024, Sept 3). Retirement Villages Association appoints new executive director. Retrieved from https://www.nbr.co.nz/comings-and-goings/retirement-villages-association-appoints-new-executive-director/

• The Weekly Source (AUS). (2024, Sept 2). John Collyns retires after 17 years as RVA Executive Director. Retrieved from https://www.theweeklysource.com.au/sector-moves-people/john-collyns-retires-after-17-years-as-retirement-villages-association-nz-executive-director

• RNZ – Radio New Zealand. (2022, Aug 31). Retirement village sector unveils voluntary reforms amid calls for law review. (Report by N. Pointon & L. Crimp). Retrieved from https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/474157/retirement-village-sector-unveils-voluntary-reforms

• RNZ – Radio New Zealand. (2023, Nov 21). Retirement Villages Association pushes back on mandatory timeframe for payouts. Retrieved from https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/502953/

• The Spinoff. (2021, June 9). How residents get trapped in the retirement village paradox. Retrieved from https://thespinoff.co.nz/business/09-06-2021/how-residents-get-trapped-in-the-retirement-village-paradox

• RVResidents News. (2022, Sept 5). Retirement village owners fight back (Stuff article summary). Retrieved from https://rvr.org.nz/retirement-village-owners-fight-back/

• Commerce Commission NZ. (2024, Feb). Retirement village sector investigation – OIA release. (Letters to operators). Retrieved from https://comcom.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0028/344539/OIA-23.159-Retirement-village-sector-investigation-22-February-2024.pdf

• Consumer NZ. (2021, Feb 8). Retirement villages: Care claims risk misleading consumers. Retrieved from https://consumer.org.nz/articles/retirement-villages-care-claims-risk-misleading-consumers (cited in Commerce Commission investigation)

• Generus Living. (2023). Our People – Graham Wilkinson (Bio). Retrieved from https://www.generus.co.nz/people

• Retirement Commission. (2022). Retirement Villages Act 2003: Options for Change – Discussion paper. (Referenced for Code of Practice audit remarks). Retrieved from https://assets.retirement.govt.nz/public/Uploads/Retirement-Villages/Events/RV-Stakeholder-Forum-Full-day-presentationfinal-for-website.pdf

• Stuff.co.nz. (2022, Sept 3). ‘Misleading and inaccurate portrayal’ of village living – retirement village owners fight back in battle to reform sector. (Article by Rob Stock, cited via RVResidents). Retrieved from https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/money/129763259/ (Describes select committee confrontation)

• Note: Additional sources include NZ Companies Office registry data and official RVA publications for verification of addresses and dates. All URLs were accessed in March 2025 and were active at time of writing.

Spot anything in this entry that is wrong? Please either leave a comment at the end or email, in confidence: bryce@democracyproject.nz

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