{"id":4170,"date":"2025-04-04T04:25:03","date_gmt":"2025-04-04T04:25:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.villages.com.au\/?p=4170"},"modified":"2025-04-04T04:29:24","modified_gmt":"2025-04-04T04:29:24","slug":"couple-finds-their-ideal-retirement-lifestyle-after-a-1800km-move","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.villages.com.au\/retirement\/couple-finds-their-ideal-retirement-lifestyle-after-a-1800km-move\/","title":{"rendered":"Couple finds their ideal retirement lifestyle after a 1,800km move"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"4170\" class=\"elementor elementor-4170\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-4691506 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"4691506\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-4b04c5d\" data-id=\"4b04c5d\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a7af983 elementor-drop-cap-yes elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"a7af983\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;drop_cap&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.15.0 - 20-08-2023 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<p>Michael and Kathie Vogel, retirees from Victoria, were living on a large property 40km outside Ballarat when Michael\u2019s doctor asked him an important question: \u201cWhat will you do when you can no longer drive?\u201d<\/p><p>That question made Michael realise just how isolated they were, especially without a nearby support network. But their answer came when Kathie\u2019s high school friend, Maureen, who lived in Aveo&#8217;s Mountain View Retirement Village in Murwillumbah, NSW, had been urging them to move for years.<\/p><p>&#8220;With my health declining, we decided to find a place that could offer more support, especially for Kathie,&#8221; Michael said.<\/p><p>As luck would have it, a three-bedroom unit became available at Mountain View, and just three weeks later, their property was sold. In June 2024, Michael, Kathie, and their two cats packed up and made the 1,800km journey north to start their new chapter.<\/p><p>Now settled in their new home, Michael and Kathie are enjoying an active, social lifestyle surrounded by friendly neighbours. Michael\u2019s health has even improved. &#8220;We have a real community here,&#8221; Michael said. &#8220;I\u2019ve always been a people person, but since moving here, Kathie\u2019s become one too.&#8221;<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-141a218 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"141a218\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-a999219\" data-id=\"a999219\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0153856 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"0153856\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.15.0 - 20-08-2023 *\/\n.elementor-widget-image{text-align:center}.elementor-widget-image a{display:inline-block}.elementor-widget-image a img[src$=\".svg\"]{width:48px}.elementor-widget-image img{vertical-align:middle;display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Picture3-1024x683.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-4173\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Picture3-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Picture3-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Picture3-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Picture3-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Picture3-585x390.jpg 585w, https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Picture3.jpg 1377w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">Michael and Jan.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-8be34c1 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"8be34c1\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-ebd111e\" data-id=\"ebd111e\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b9161b6 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"b9161b6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A talented guitarist and vocalist, Michael has formed a band with fellow resident Jan Jensen. Together, they perform at regular dance nights at the village. &#8220;I&#8217;ve played guitar and sung since I was eight. Jan and I play everything from ballads to rock&#8217;n&#8217;roll,&#8221; Michael said.<\/p><p>Set in the stunning Tweed Valley, Mountain View offers a vibrant community with breathtaking views and lush rainforests. Residents enjoy a low-maintenance lifestyle, with time for walks through beautiful gardens and access to plenty of local amenities, like cafes, public transport, beaches, and the town centre.<\/p><p>The village also offers great facilities, including a pool, bowling green, restaurant, community centre, salon, library, and even a convenience store. For those who want extra help, there are services like meals and housekeeping available.<\/p><p>&#8220;Life at Mountain View has exceeded all our expectations,&#8221; said Michael. &#8220;We live in a beautiful, well-appointed unit, with no home maintenance to worry about. Our only regret is not moving here sooner.&#8221;<\/p><p>At Mountain View, the Vogels found not just a home, but a true community, and a lifestyle that fits their needs perfectly.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Michael and Kathie Vogel, retirees from Victoria, were living on a large property 40km outside Ballarat when Michael\u2019s doctor asked him an important question: \u201cWhat will you do when you can no longer drive?\u201d That question made Michael realise just how isolated they were, especially&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4171,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[70],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-retirement"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4170"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4170\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4179,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4170\/revisions\/4179"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}