This is a wild and tumultuous free market. Many factors come into the building/offering of CCRCs. You MUST do a lot of research because if you make a mistake with your $$$$, nobody is going to come to your rescue and get it back. There are no real guarantees in the eldercare facility. First: Is the facility non-profit or for-profit? Non-profits rate better for care and lower staff turnover. But be aware that at any time, a non-profit can be bought by a for-profit corporation - in fact, many already have and this trend is increasing. This is not, repeat, not, to say that for-profits are always bad. Many are quite nice. Where we found the biggest difference was not at the Asst Living level, but at the Memory Care/skilled nursing (e.g., 24/7 care commonly called "nursing home" level care). At that level, the cost between non- and for-profits was noticeable. We're talking a $2-3K/monthly difference. Also, when staff turnover is high, care suffers at all levels. We've visited places where the daytime staff that one saw in the public areas were all smiles and welcoming, but at night the staff was indifferent and brusque - not just to visitors, but to residents! Cost is not as important as the type of social environment. "Like to like" should be the motto of these facilities. We investigated eight nearby full-service facilities for my MIL, and every one of them had a different social atmosphere. We did very intensive research and multiple visits, to ensure the one we picked would be the best for her while being a place she would enjoy the most. As most know from my other posts, we were successful. But it took months to achieve it. You can check a facility's inspection record through the appropriate state regulators. Ours are on-line and although it took a lot of time, it MUST be done. When I finished I had confidence the facility we chose was ranked third in the state and had only extremely minor issues, which were promptly corrected. So what is the cost? There are two big issues: one is the upfront buy-in cost; the other is the cost of 24/7 care. Due to state licensing requirements, most senior facilities find it easier to apply for an AL license for all their living units, rather than designating some as 'independent' and some as 'assisted'. For Asst. Living, we found little difference between the various facilities we saw. In our high labor cost state, "rent" ranged from $2800-$4000/mo., for smaller units that were either studios, junior studios, or 1 bdrm. Some had 1/2 baths, some had full baths. Not all had kitchens (we didn't want one; MIL had dementia so not safe for her to cook). Within Asst Living there were three levels of care, as determined by MIL's facility. The family can negotiate but it's the facility that decides what to charge extra for. Every facility is different but most have a similar type process. It can be expensive: MIL needed nothing more than daily medication help and weekly bathing assistance. That cost $900/mo. and was rated Level 1, the cheapest extra assistance pkg. Buy-ins vary enormously. With a larger buy-in you are paying for your monthly costs to never increase even if you need 24/7 care eventually. With a smaller buy-in if you need to move, your costs will be charged market rate. This may sound great but every facility we met with told us they raise rates 3-5% annually, every July, without fail. So if you go in at age 60, and need 24/7 care at age 85, what the facility is charging today will be more than double when you finally do go in. Will you have enough $$$$? And please, do not fall in with the common idea of "Well, at 85 I won't care, and I'll probably be dead anyway." My MIL was 84 when she went in. Imagine her shock to discover that among her three other tablemates at meals, she was considered "the baby"! People are living longer, and you might well be one of them. We're very happy we found a place that worked out so well for her, but it took effort on our part. I urge you not to short doing your research. Find a place that suits you, even if it is a little further from family. This is one of the most expensive decisions you will ever make, and you should never have to regret it.

I met with the coordinator today and had a tour of the facility. It's lovely. It's warm and cozy and has a real home-like feel about it. There are approximately 40 residents, and I met quite a few of them. One of the ladies asked the coordinator, "Where'd you find this pretty girl?" and that was so cute, as it's been ages since anyone's called me pretty or a girl! ;-) From the minute I walked in the door, folks were friendly. As I sat in the lobby and waited for the coordinator to meet me, a couple of ladies (residents) were sitting out there and they immediately started chatting with me. Just so very friendly, and obviously eager for someone NEW to talk to. There are numerous activities throughout each day, and I may be able to pop in some evenings but mostly my involvement will be on the weekends. Playing games with the residents, reading stories to them, or just taking them out into the beautiful garden courtyard on nice days so that they can get some fresh air. And talking. I'm sure there will be PLENTY of talking. The facility has a photo wall where they post pictures of residents fulfilling their "bucket list." Several of the ladies had always wanted to go to the theater, so there are photos of them dressed up at a production. One gentleman wanted to go fishing, and there's a photo of him kissing the fish he'd caught. One sweet little lady wanted to ride a motorcycle, but was too scared to get on the back of one, so they found one with a sidecar and she rode in that. As you can imagine, her photo was just beyond precious. This is a Level B facility, which was explained to me to be a facility in which the residents require SOME assistance but are generally mobile and able to feed themselves. One of the women who lives there has a little dog, and two of the men have cats. One is actually a kitten, and the receptionist told me how lonely he had been until he got this little cat, which now sleeps on his shoulders. I'm so looking forward to going back and getting involved. I felt I did pretty well today in stepping outside my own comfort zone and engaging with the residents, trying not to be self-conscious or shy. I'm pretty sure I even detected a streak of mischief in some of the women. This may be interesting! Certainly it will be a blessing to me, to be able to share some time with my new neighbors across the street.

Our experience has been the same as gardengal's. Mother moved from her home to a one bedroom independent living apartment. Many of her antiques, all of her jewelry. And, she'd worked several years at a jewelry store....and found those employee cost + 10% terms very hard to pass ;0) From independent to a facility that was both independent and assisted when she needed a little more help. Again, a one bed apartment. I moved her in February to a studio in a facility where she gets more attention after finding response time too slow where she was, staff too limited. It's working out perfectly. She is in a studio apartment in a wing called enhanced assisted. Not full time nursing but more attention while still giving her some independent opportunities, stimulation, activities she may choose. Her own furniture and some of her antiques. Some of her jewelry still - because she asked for it, and its hers. Nothing has ever been missing, disturbed, 'borrowed'. Her antique barristers cabinet is outside her apartment at the hallway end. It was that, or storage and I didn't want to take it away from her. It holds some of her porcelain and pincushion dolls, family photos in antique frames, some of her books. No one has touched it other than housekeeping when dusting or cleaning the glass doors. This last facility is huge, and lovely. Every level of care from just reaching the point of wanting dining room meals and housekeeping, to full memory care. I moved her in February and am still carrying a map in my purse ;0) It's on enough acres it has three postal addresses depending on which wing one is residing in. An enormous staff as you can imagine, everyone so far has been helpful and honest. I've yet to meet or hear of a light fingered neighbor.

Would it be that we all aged at ninety plus to this?: Yes....... the wonderful lady, client and now dear friend is one whose apartment at senior living i remodeled, and also " mini re created" her former address. Will be 93 this summer, and she is INCREDIBLE. She doesn't shuffle, has no mobility issues..........however. Note no thresholds, area rugs that can come up. A kitchen with her favorite place to sit -at the counter on a Serena and Lily stool . We should all be so damn lucky. She wishes she had made the move SOONER and is enjoying the heck out of her busy life there. ( she's yapping on the phone second pic.... hard to catch up with her. Swim, bridge, duplicate bridge........"dinner with the WIDOWS" LOL " I have accepted that this will not be MY old age conditions, unless I cease eating and drinking.... and a lot of other stuff too : ) Folks? Go before you need to go. Don't cling to junk. Your kids don't want it. Or want a miniscule fraction of it. Whenever I read one of these "age in place" dilemmas? I think.....yeah.............right. You need friends, community, and spur of the moment help. Or as a doctor said to me: "At a little over eighty, your physiology balances on the head of a straigh PIN." Memorize it.