ANGELA COX: What's it like when you're out there,
driving along in the convertible, with the top down
and the wind through your hair?
Do you feel like you've made it?
Yes. (CHUCKLES)
Every time we go in the car,
that's what you say, isn't it? Yes. Yes.
Colin and Michelle Bodie love two things in life -
their family,
and the bright yellow MG they meticulously restored together.
Who picked the canary yellow?
Oh, that was my idea. Oh, yeah, Colin's.
Yes. I love bright colours. If you're gonna have a...
It's Monaro... Monaro yellow.
Yeah, Monaro. Yeah. If you're gonna have a...
If you're gonna have a... drive a sports car,
it's gotta be bright-coloured. It's... makes them go faster.
The Bodies have nailed the retirement of their dreams,
downsizing from this, in suburban Melbourne,...
..to this, on the Mornington Peninsula,
pocketing enough money from the sale
to set themselves up for the rest of their lives.
So, are you among Australia's happiest retirees?
Yes.
But we don't want to sound too... too positive, because...
because everybody might want to do it.
(CHUCKLES)
(LAUGHS)
But it's not the only way to do it.
This is what you wake up to every morning?
Yes. It's lovely.
Tonight, the inspiring people
who've found the recipe for making life work after work -
at home
and away.
When I looked to here, and what I could have,
and how I could live, it really was a no-brainer.
Could you ever imagine having all of this anywhere in Australia?
Never, ever, ever, in a million years.
I would be living in... in poverty.
But first, inside this home,
on the New South Wales Central Coast,
a bold retirement experiment
is in its tenth year.
One sprawling house;
three retired couples...
Out, out, out, out. Out. You've got your own thing over there.
..who have pooled their savings
to make the best of their golden years.
Good. Good.
I think it's more of an adventure, really.
I think it was not to end up in aged care.
Certainly that, but then, you know, where could we go
and build something, create something that we would like?
What they created was three houses in one.
Michael and Judy Hollingworth live in one wing
(LAUGHS)
Their American friends, Daniel and Eve Grzybowski, live in another.
What didn't you want your retirement to be?
Anything that seemed to be what everybody was doing in retirement -
moving into a retirement village;
hanging out strictly with other people who were retired
and getting old;
and no young people around.
There didn't seem to be any options that seemed very attractive.
Ah.
The third couple are Canadians - Rick and Heather Bolster.
Cheers.
I didn't want the life that my parents had, which was...
isolation, growing old, getting more and more rigid in their lives
and set in their ways,
and never getting out and seeing anything any more,
and, kind of, withering into old age.
'Like the menace in "Jaws"'.
And I didn't want that for myself.
I didn't want a conventional 'old folks' home',
you know, a retirement village where we go and it's just the two of us.
I mean, we wanted something else.
The idea of finding something else first came up 18 years ago.
Back then, all three couples lived
in their own homes in suburban Sydney.
They were good mates - even took holidays together.
One night, at dinner, they started talking about the years ahead.
So, what was your worst fear
about growing old?
Finishing up in a retirement home.
Complete loss of autonomy,
loss of interest in life,
and what was the other thing?
No stimulation.
No social... You know, like, dull,
flat, boring.
Then you go the other way. Just unwind.
It was what all three couples were determined to avoid.
Eve was the first to suggest that, perhaps,
they could live together and look after each other.
Everybody wants to take ownership of the idea,
but I think it was my idea. (LAUGHS)
And... I said, "Well, what if we do this?"
You know, "We live together."
You know, "We all want to retire.
"We all want a gentler lifestyle.
"So what if we all did it together?" You know, "See what it's like."
"How many movies have been made
"in the 'Mad Max' franchise?" Four.
Three old and one new.
But not everyone was on board.
Daniel had his doubts.
Initially, I was willing to humour the others,... (CHUCKLES)
because I didn't think there was any hope of
this sort of thing happening.
I did have plenty of share houses when I was younger,
and I thought, "This is not necessarily a great idea."
(GENTLE MUSIC)
So, first, they took a test drive of their idea,
renting a large house in Sydney together for two years.
It was only then that they decided to take the big leap -
sell up and construct a purpose-built house
they could all share for the rest of their lives.
The initial investment was about 250,000 per couple.
Thank you so much for having me over for lunch. This looks amazing.
This is a do-it-yourself retirement home.
Now, who'd like a bit of white?
Mmm. Yeah, that is good.
You've been friends for decades,
and you holiday together.
Clearly very good friends, to come up with this plan.
Do you still like each other as much,
now that you've lived together? Or do you like each other more?
I'd say more. More.
It depends on the day.
(ALL LAUGH)
It's an arrangement that seems to be working out well for everyone.
But what happens in the years ahead,
when they may not be as healthy and active as they are today?
Should have brought out the china for this.
We've got a... a staged plan -
look after each other,
get in home care...
When it's getting too much of that,
then we'll have live-in home care,...
If necessary. ..up in the shed, if necessary.
Or if it works. You know, we've got stages of,
"How long can we run this out
"before we're obliged to step out of it altogether?"
And, hopefully, die here.
(PLAYS GENTLE TUNE)
BRETT STENE: What concerns me most is the exit strategy for this.
As people age,
can they all look after
or put the same amount of energy into a property?
Because a property that's 4 acres requires upkeep.
Brett Stene is a financial planner
who specialises in helping people get retirement ready.
His biggest red flag is if there's a serious health issue
or a falling out among the couples.
I believe the most important question to ask is,
"Are we all willing to sell?"
Because if it can't work, if something goes wrong,
"Are we all willing to get out?"
It's almost like a marriage with six people in it,
and when you look at how messy a divorce
with two people in it can get,
is it fraught with danger?
Well, people are often more forgiving for friends
than they are for partners, so that's nice.
But it is fraught with danger.
I love that sunlight.
I want them to all die on the same day,
all be happy, and it'll be fantastic.
It'll be one of those experiments
that'll be written up for years to come.
But it's probably not going to be like that.
Someone will need to move on,
or members within each couple will need to move on. That's hard.
Like so many Australians nearing the age of retirement,
Colin and Michelle Bodie were asset-rich but cash-poor.
They were living in their large family home in Melbourne's suburbs
and struggling with the upkeep.
So they decided to downsize.
COLIN: Downsizing is...
It's something that you're gonna do for the last time, probably -
before palliative career, or, you know... or you die. (CHUCKLES)
When they sold up,
they used the money to buy into an over-50s resort
on the Mornington Peninsula.
For around 400,000,
they got a pleasant two-bedroom home
in a safe, gated community.
They also have a stash of left-over cash in the bank.
But you still have to live comfortably.
You still... You still wanna have a nice house,
which we've got,
but it's nowhere near the value of the one that we had.
But it's... it's only two of us, you see, so we don't need...
We haven't got... We haven't got our children living with us,
so two bedrooms and a study is fine. Mm.
So, instead of having 1 million in assets,
now you've got 1 million in cash,
so you can actually enjoy your retirement?
Exactly. Yeah.
And I think... I think, after half a century working,
it's time for a rest.
We're all looking down the barrel of retirement.
How much do we need to retire comfortably?
We probably need...
As a couple, about 700,000 is the sweet spot, OK?
It's the sweet spot in terms of the superannuation you'd like to have.
The more, the better.
Brett Stene says many Australians are either doing or planning to do
exactly what Colin and Michelle have done.
But, he warns, there can be traps.
It's an over-50s,
so, therefore, it's designed for someone who's healthy,
feeling good about life and wants to keep going in that way.
Unfortunately...
Yes, it can be great upfront,
but often people then need to move on at a later time.
So, therefore, you need
to be thinking, when you move to somewhere like an over-50s,
read the fine print, because, at some stage,
you may need to be exiting from that arrangement.
But, right now, Colin and Michelle are living their dream.
"You boys go out on the boat," they said.
There's fishing on their doorstep,...
They won't miss us. They're... They're happy.
..and plenty of action inside the gates as well.
Now, whose turn is it now?
Oh, my turn. Oh, sorry.
No, it's alright. Let me see if I can...
Do you think any one of us will actually get it through?
No.
(ALL EXCLAIM)
I'm made for this life!
I need to retire and move here.
Straight through.
Very good.
Can we go and have a drink? Yes.
Nearly happy hour. OK.
(GENTLE GUITAR MUSIC)
ANGELA COX: Australia has 5.5 million baby boomers,...
(DOOR BELL RINGS)
...but they don't all call Australia home.
BOTH: Hello.
Come in. Angela.
Hi, Angela. It's lovely to meet you. So lovely to meet you.
Thank you so much for having me.
Come through.
Norah Ohrt is one of a growing number of Australian retirees
who've relocated abroad.
Sort of, the living room, dining room,...
Amazing. ..kitchen combined.
Up until seven years ago,
Norah lived in Perth.
But she's chosen to spend her twilight years half a world away.
And this is the terrace off my bedroom.
Wow. Look at this view.
This is what you wake up to every morning?
Yes. It's lovely. Ever get tired of it? (CHUCKLES)
Never. Never?
Never.
(GENTLE MUSIC)
Her new home sits high in a historic hilltop village
overlooking the olive groves of southern Spain.
I'm very fortunate to have this.
I would never be able to have it in Australia.
It's lovely.
Oh, that view would never get old.
Here, we have three bedrooms, two bathrooms,
a study upstairs on the top floor, for guests,
and this level, where we are now,
which is the living room, dining room, kitchen.
And that's my house. (CHUCKLES)
My gorgeous patio...
Oh! ..and garden,
which I couldn't have if I lived in a city.
A big house and a comfortable middle-class life
seemed impossible when Norah first retired
from her Perth art gallery job
on a single pension.
Oh, and I've got to show you my pantry.
I realised very quickly that there was no way,
with the superannuation that I had,
that I was going to be able to even afford
a small, one-bedroom apartment
in the area that I wanted to live in.
You certainly couldn't drink like this
back home in Perth? No. No.
I... I would be living in... in poverty.
The best pantry in town. Yeah, absolutely.
I concur, I think.
I don't think I would have been able to afford
to go to the theatre, to go to films,
to eat lamb or beef,
to have expensive heating in my house...
To me, that is not how pensioners should have to live.
(MARIACHI MUSIC)
Norah found herself reminiscing
about her happy year living in Madrid in the '60s.
She started googling and stumbled across
a left-field solution to all her financial woes.
It was a big step.
When I told my friends I'd bought a house in Spain, they,
you know, "What?"
So many of them said, "That's fantastic.
"We're coming to stay."
(BOTH CHUCKLE)
Did anyone say, "You're crazy"?
Oh, yes, quite a few people said, you know, "You're mad."
Norah bought her house in Martos outright for just 60,000
and spent another 40,000 on renovations.
(BOTH SPEAK SPANISH)
She secured a Spanish visa
and arranged for her Australian pension -
in full - to be deposited directly into a local bank.
Avocados here are only 2 euros for four avocados.
Norah's day-to-day living expenses
are less than half what she'd pay in Australia.
I can afford the lifestyle that I would want to have in Australia -
that I had in Australia when I was working.
I can entertain my friends,
I can go out and buy a case of wine,
I can buy the sorts of meats that I want to buy...
I can do everything I want to do.
Muchas gracias.
BRETT STENE: Sounds great - olive groves, vineyards...
But maybe every day just sitting, watching the vineyard,
is actually not the perfect retirement that we think it is.
(CHUCKLES)
Financial planner Brett Stene says that retiring overseas
can be cost-effective, but you have to do your research.
Be aware. Of course, there's currency,
so that goes up and goes down.
So you are now living on that amount of money,
which has a variation.
So, in her case, also,
I'd be thinking about, as you age,
are you comfortable? Who's going to be looking after you?
It sounds fantastic when you're healthy,
but you have to be really conscious of,
when you get older, therefore, what sort of care is required?
Again, Norah has hit the jackpot.
Spain is ranked as having one of the best healthcare services
in the world,...
Hola. Buenos dias. Hola.
..better than the UK or the US.
And private health cover is affordable.
15.85.
I pay just over 2,000 a year.
If I go to hospital or to the doctor,
I don't have any extra to pay.
It covers absolutely every penny -
and that's for specialists, surgery, X-rays, everything.
Of course, Spain isn't all sunshine and sangria.
Norah has faced some challenges along the way,
including learning the language.
(ALL SPEAK SPANISH)
But a crash course in Spanish
yielded a whole new circle of friends.
(ALL SPEAK SPANISH)
Through here - this is a big one, isn't it?
Norah admits moving away from Australia was easier for her
because she wasn't leaving any grandchildren behind.
Now, she's surrounded by children all the time.
Older people are revered in Spain,
and young folk are taught to treat them with the utmost respect.
Could you ever imagine having all of this anywhere in Australia?
Never, ever, ever, in a million years.
And no regrets?
No regrets at all.
None. None.
So, you can't see any reason why you would move back to Australia?
No, none at all. No.
This is my home, and I will die here.
And your heart's happy with that?
My heart's very happy with that.