St Johns Wood
photos: operator / Village Guide
Retirement living · Papatoetoe, Manukau City

St Johns Wood

Oceania Village Company Limited · Taupo · minutes from the lake · Rest Home, Hospital & Respite care
Life Score
47
Basic
Capital Back
58
the money ↓
See what life here is like — then weigh what it means for your family further down.
The village

Life here

St Johns Wood sits just minutes from Lake Taupō, offering aged care residents easy access to the best the region has to offer—from lakeside walks to local shops and eateries. This is care reimagined: personalised care plans, a 24/7 nurse on site, and a team recognised by the NZ Aged Care Association for keeping residents genuinely connected to their community. Life here centres on the Five Ways to Wellbeing—connection, movement, mindfulness, learning and giving back—woven into daily rhythms through van trips, happy hours, music therapy, and activities that feel purposeful rather than prescribed.

Your home

Living options

Care Suites & Care Rooms

St Johns Wood offers both Care Suites (which provide Rest Home and Hospital level care in one space, so no need to move as needs change) and standard Care Rooms. All suites feature heat pumps, full en-suites, and kitchenettes with fridge and kettle—perfect for visits from family and friends. You own the right to occupy your suite and can personalise it with your own furniture and treasured pieces.

Care Suites with Rest Home & Hospital level care
Standard Care Rooms
Full en-suite bathrooms
Heat pump heating
Kitchenette with fridge & kettle
Personalisation with own furniture
Living options
A day in the life

What living here is actually like

Community and wellbeing are at the heart of St Johns Wood.

Activities & Connection

Days are shaped by the Five Ways to Wellbeing: residents connect through happy hours and shared meals, stay active with physiotherapy and movement sessions tailored to ability, take notice through the I Love Music programme and garden activities, keep learning through new experiences, and give back through community initiatives. Van trips, a communal BBQ area, and regular chaplain visits create natural gathering points. On-site services—hairdresser, podiatrist, physiotherapist—mean less travel and more time enjoying what matters.

Van trips & outings
Happy hours
Communal BBQ area
I Love Music programme
Movement & vitality sessions
Chaplain visits & services
Free WiFi & audiobook library
On-site hairdresser
Regular activities calendar
Always something on
On your doorstep

Facilities & services

24/7 registered nurse
Communal BBQ area
Van trips
On-site hairdresser
Physiotherapist visits
Podiatrist clinic
Chaplain services
Free WiFi
Audiobook library
Heat pumps in all rooms
En-suite bathrooms
Kitchenettes in Care Suites
Peace of mind

Care for life, on site

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

Rest homeHospitalRespite
✓ Registered nurse (24/7) · Physiotherapy · Podiatry · Personalised care plans · Chaplaincy
Care and community
Where it is

Setting & neighbourhood

St Johns Wood is located in Taupō, just minutes from the lake and the heart of the region. The village enjoys easy access to local shops, eateries, and beautiful walkways with stunning views. Public transport is readily available, making it simple for residents to visit friends and family or explore the wider community. The setting balances peaceful, quality care with connection to the vibrant life Taupō offers.

Interested?

Like the look of St Johns Wood?

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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
58
Above average · #75 of 520
Better than 86% of NZ villages — yet the market median is just 46. The sector is tough.
Deferred fee
30%
~$87k on a $290k unit, over 3 years
Your share of capital gain
0%
operator keeps 100% of any uplift
Time to get capital back
~151 days
median, from 2 recent resales
Fees after you leave
Stop
good — many villages keep charging
7 years
Your estate receives
$203,000
Operator keeps (deferred fee)$87,000
Share of your $290,000 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 58 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%
151 days across recent resales.
86
Fees stop when you leave Weekly fees on exit — weighted 15%
Charges end on vacancy.
100
Interest if repayment is slow Interest on delayed capital — weighted 10%
Interest is payable if capital is returned late.
100
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 $290,000 = ~$87,000

Accrues over your first 3 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

~151 days median

Your capital is repaid once the unit is re-licensed to a new resident. (Operator-stated average: 151 days.)

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

Fees & interest on exit

Resident-friendly

Weekly fees stop when you vacate, and interest is payable if your capital is returned late.

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 $87,000 is gone in deferred fees within 3 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