Retirement Villages only require that you are over 55 years of age, & is primarily a choice, whereas Aged Care you need to have an ACAT assessment to be able to enter care, because the Federal Government subsidises Aged Care, Retirement Villages are not subsidised by Government nor are they Guaranteed by Government.

The amount the Government will subsidise you in an aged care facility is determined by a means test, & if you are assessed as being eligible to afford it, in aged care you will be charged a Means Tested Fee, which effectively reduces the amount the Government will subsidise you. Retirement Villages will not attract any Government subsidy.

There is no Nursing care in Retirement Villages, you may get an assisted living package (but that is not nursing care). You may also be entitled to a “home care package” which is delivered in your retirement village unit (but you could equally get that delivered in your own home).

The treatment of Aged Care is very different from Retirement Villages, & even though there are Retirement Villages that have an Aged care facility on site, the rules, the funding, & the detail are very different, it just simply means they are co-located. Many Village operators do this deliberately, so that their residents don’t have to go anywhere else for their aged care if they need it, as moving can be disconcerting & disruptive once you are elderly.

An Aged Care facility you pay an Accommodation Payment upfront which is an interest free loan, whereas a retirement Village you are buying in (even if you don’t own the Real Estate).