Clawton Masonic Village
photos: operator / Village Guide
Retirement living · Westown, New Plymouth

Clawton Masonic Village

Masonic Care Limited · Westown, New Plymouth · 20 independent villas surrounded by native bush
Life Score
30
Basic
Capital Back
38
the money ↓
See what life here is like — then weigh what it means for your family further down.
The village

Life here

Nestled in the leafy Westown suburb of New Plymouth, Clawton Masonic Village is a intimate collection of 20 villas operated by The Masonic Villages Trust. Surrounded by native bush alive with tuis, bellbirds and kereru, residents enjoy both the tranquility of nature and easy access to local shops, cafes and medical services just minutes away. Life here reflects the charitable principles at the heart of Freemasonry—a smaller, more personal community where neighbours become friends.

Your home

Living options

Independent Villas

20 standalone villas designed for independent living in a secure, well-maintained community.

Standalone villas
Secure lockable windows and doors
Lawn mowing and general maintenance included
Living options
A day in the life

What living here is actually like

Residents enjoy a peaceful lifestyle with community connection.

Community & Activities

The Taranaki Masonic Trust hosts an annual luncheon bringing residents together. The village is surrounded by beautiful native bush with abundant birdlife, offering a serene setting for daily life.

Annual resident luncheon
Native bush surroundings with native bird life
Close to Westown shops, cafes and restaurants
Nearby doctor's surgery
Always something on
On your doorstep

Facilities & services

Lawn mowing service
General maintenance
Secure grounds
Peace of mind

Care for life, on site

If your health changes, you won't have to leave the place you know. Clawton Masonic Village offers these levels of care on site:

Independent
Care and community
Where it is

Setting & neighbourhood

Clawton Masonic Village is located in Westown, a suburb just minutes from New Plymouth city centre in Taranaki. The village is surrounded by beautiful native bush with abundant birdlife including tuis, bellbirds and kereru (native pigeons). Westown centre provides convenient access to a post office, local shops, cafes, restaurants and a nearby doctor's surgery, ensuring residents have essential services within easy reach.

Interested?

Like the look of Clawton Masonic?

Get the brochure, current pricing and availability, or book a look around — sent straight to you. No pressure, and we'll never pass your details to the village without asking.

We only use this to send you village info. Independent — no operator pays to be listed.
✓ On its way

We'll email the details shortly.
Want a second opinion on the contract too? Get independent advice →

Now the practical part

The money — what comes back to your family

You've seen why you'd love it. This is the part most families only discover at the exit statement — so we put it in plain sight. Every figure is from the village's own filed Disclosure Statement.

Capital Back score
38
Below average · #345 of 520
Better than 34% of NZ villages — yet the market median is just 46. The sector is tough.
Deferred fee
30%
~$30k on a $100k unit, over 2.5 years
Your share of capital gain
0%
operator keeps 100% of any uplift
Time to get capital back
~54 days
median, from 3 recent resales
Fees after you leave
Continue
charged until the unit resells
7 years
Your estate receives
$70,000
Operator keeps (deferred fee)$30,000
Share of your $100,000 back70%
Before you sign, get independent eyes on the contract.An ORA-review lawyer or independent financial adviser — never paid by any operator — checks what it really means for your family.
⚖ Get independent advice →
How the 38 is built

Nothing hidden — every component

The Capital Back score is a transparent weighting of five filed terms — you can see exactly where this village wins and loses.

Move-in fee you don't get back Deferred Management Fee — weighted 30%
30% deferred fee — lower is better.
25
Share of capital growth Capital gain to resident — weighted 15%
0% — the operator keeps any resale uplift.
0
Speed your capital returns Median resale time — weighted 30%
54 days across recent resales.
100
Fees stop when you leave Weekly fees on exit — weighted 15%
Fees continue until the unit resells.
0
Interest if repayment is slow Interest on delayed capital — weighted 10%
No interest on delayed repayment.
0
The filed terms, in plain English

What the Disclosure Statement actually says

Every operator uses different words for the same thing — we normalise them so you can compare like with like.

%

Deferred Management Fee

30% of $100,000 = ~$30,000

Accrues over your first 2.5 years, charged on the entry price.

Market: median 30%; only 16% of villages charge under 25%.

Capital gain

0% to the resident

Any increase in the licence value at resale is kept entirely by the operator.

Market: just 8% of NZ villages share any capital gain.

How fast your capital comes back

~54 days median

Your capital is repaid once the unit is re-licensed to a new resident. (Operator-stated average: 78 days.)

Market: median 154 days; 21 villages still average over a year.
!

Fees & interest on exit

Watch this

Weekly fees continue until the unit resells.

Market: 220 of 520 villages keep charging weekly fees after you've gone.
Before you sign the ORA

The reckoning usually arrives too late

  • You're buying a licence to occupy, not the home — you can't sell, rent or borrow against it.
  • Roughly $30,000 is gone in deferred fees within 2.5 years, whatever the unit later sells for.
  • Your family carries the risk of how long resale takes — and the operator's ability to pay.
  • None of this is hidden — it's all in the Disclosure Statement most people sign without reading.
Have someone independent read it first

We'll connect you with a retirement-village review lawyer or independent financial adviser — no operator pays to be here.

Request an ORA review → Talk to a financial adviser