Based on hearing a lot about CCRC in various threads here, I mentioned to my husband. We decided to ask our FA about it at a recent meeting. FA explained some pros/cons. One that is popular around here has a few of his clients, mostly (not all of then) happy there. But he said buy-in can be a stunning $1million (not sure about refund policy), and “that can buy a lot of home healthcare”. Based on the high cost that particular place won’t be on our radar. But the whole thought process was useful because we realize that the lack of flexiblity if we wanted to relocate to kids (one in CO and one in MA, neither permantly planted) is a big disadvantage. Interestingly I just joined a university women club, and their welcome tea will be at that same facility… ha, the facility managers must realize it’s an aging group (or maybe one of the members lives there).
Yikes! I was going to follow you on this but that is way out of my budget. I’m hoping to just get into an active 55+ neighborhood with my own 2 or 3 bed / 2 bath private home with golf cart paths and great community club activities…..pretty popular around here. Higher HOA fee but they are taking care of my small yard, so worth it. If we stay healthy could stay there through our 80s and pay for meal deliveries if I didn’t want to cook. Interestingly there was a very old woman living in a very expensive gated community nearby that was getting Meals on Wheels delivery regularly and it was ticking off neighbors to see this. What they did not know was she donating $Ms to the county MoW program and just wanted the service and the human contact every day. People do need people.
I do see value to that. Be aware tha terms vary by neighborhood.
We have friends who purchased a nice 3br ranch in a 55+ community, and the common grounds are maintained by the association. But small responsiblities remain. Although the sidewalks gets plowed, they need to shovel their own driveway (but hey, in Colorado retirement you can just wait til it melts). Although big lawns are mowed, you need to mow your very small front lawn and a tiny swath of back lawns, before it merges into the big common lawn. And of course you still have to deal with your own roof, furnace etc. Still tis lots easier than the maintenance on the house/yard where we live. Ha, unless you get roped into being on the association board. .. that can be a headache (or a joy I suppose).
Completely agree with @ChoatieMom’s points. $3M upfront for promises of care and some portion to be returned to the estate? Sounds like a pyramid scheme of sorts in the making if they require so much cash upfront to finance their operations.
Not a lot of snow here in Georgia and when it does, we just lock in 
for a day until melts. My in-laws are in a small 2/2 - it will be hard to leave my 1 acre treed lot to looking out my window and seeing someone elses siding….but, to only have to worry about a small place and not do yards at all (unless I plant flowers which I would), have indoor and outdoor pools, many activities with walking and golf cart paths, all in a gated community seems kind of nice to me. I think my money would go further here since you can bring in healthcare workers if needed. If you get to the memory care stage, can you not just go into one or do you have to start at an assisted living level to get into one?
My point in starting this thread was to find more reasonably priced options!! Just showed that as something someone sent me!!
That model of money going back to the estate I have heard of before. But that assumes the place doesn’t go into bankruptcy or get sold to another company with a different model. And it usually means 75% of the original buy in- not what the cost of some new person buying in would be at that time. Its $$$$$$$$$$$$$
One things not mentioned are family care homes, often in residential neighborhoods. They are a lot more variable in the quality and services. They tend to have fewer amenities but are smaller and can be more flexible. It’s not an active 55+ community but another way people age safely.
When people don’t start in the CCRC, whether one can just get in when they need higher levels of care is on a space available basis, with residents who bought in getting priority.
@HImom - could you expand a little on family care homes? I’ve heard of neighborhoods getting together to have a nurse or aide come regularly for the group thereby saving money (although it wouldn’t work for more extensive care needs).
What you mentioned sounds a bit different, though…?
not sure if what I’ve seen is similar to what @HImom is mentioning. In a neighborhood I walk there are about 4 single family homes that house seniors. They are licensed and seem to have a lot of papers posted on the front door. The residents look to be people who would be in an assisted living facility. They have what are probably home health aides. I don’t see it as an alternative for active seniors. One of the houses was for sale and when I walked through it looked like bathrooms had been converted to handicap accessible.
My neighbor went into a family care home this past year. It is a regular (large) house in a regular residential neighborhood that has been retro-fitted inside to give each resident a private bed/bath with communal living room, dining area, and outdoor spaces, all handicap accessible. There is no signage so, from the outside, you would not know that this is not a private family home. In his home, there are eight residents and a full-time staff of care providers, medical/PT professionals, and a cook. He is diabetic, on oxygen, in a wheelchair, and requires 24x7 oversight as do most of the residents. He is in the last year of his life, optimistically, but his mind is sharp. When I am in Arizona, I visit bringing baked goods and a type of coffee he likes from a local roastery. I am very impressed with the level of care he gets, the cleanliness of the facility, and the way the residents interact. He is very happy there. Cost is $6,500/mo.
Don’t underestimate the costs of hiring, firing, hiring again when you have live in help.
Agree with @blossom’s comments that you have do your research with in-home care. My neighbor had a wonderful in-home caregiver until his medical needs outstripped the live-in’s ability to provide the escalating level of care required. It was the in-home caregiver who rang the alarm with my neighbor’s sister (who lives in OH) to say that his client required more medical care than he could provide, and he was the one who did the work for the OOS sister to provide a list of care homes for her to research. She flew into AZ to work with the live-in to select the appropriate care home, and the two of them moved my neighbor in. If my dad’s wife passes before he does (likely that she won’t last the year), we will move him into my mom’s house (near us) and use this same caregiver on a non-live-in basis.
In DH’s parent’s case, another highly-qualified, compassionate caregiver was coming to their home five hours a day to manage their meds, do light housekeeping, make their lunches and dinners, drive them to appointments, pick up prescriptions, etc. Unfortunately, MIL decided she didn’t like the caregiver and fired her. The family washed their hands and have been very upfront that F/MIL are on their own now, no one is coming to rescue them. They say they’re fine with that.
My Dad went straight to memory care from home. Our experience was that we had to cycle through three different facilities as management changed and services deteriorated at each and it was clear patients with daily visitors and private nurses fared best.
When the time came for Mom to have a more safe and supportive environment, we decided for her to move to an active independent living facility in a two bedroom rental unit so we will have flexibility (and be able to afford) to hire private caregivers around the clock, if need be, and also the freedom to move her elsewhere easily if the place goes downhill. We focused on the facilities, community, and location with an eye on keeping her mentally and physically active. It’s in the heart of a college town, steps from campus, which brings student visitors, particularly musicians, and access to lifelong learning opportuntities. The building is across the street from a grocery, a few blocks from a large beach, and has a saltwater pool she uses daily.
Her monthly fees cover the cost of nightly dinner with a crew of tablemates, weekly bedding, towel and trash service, door-to-door van rides within a certain radius, and daily activities. There is also an a la carte menu of upgrades including pill reminder / administration, physical therapy, wearable alert devices, excursions to museums and shows, laundry, more extensive cleaning services, etc.
I’d envision a similar move for us once retired and when my husband and I reach a certain age and stage. Easy, (relatively) affordable, and flexible.
There are so many different options for seniors today.
There are age restricted rentals in regular communities (basically renting an apartment where the head of household has to be of the required age - some are 55+ some are 65+)
There are age restricted condos in regular communities. Like the rentals, only you own the unit, are part of an HOA, and have some maintenance responsibilities.
There are assisted living facilities, that claim you can stay with additional services. Most only have memory care. When you require regular nursing care, you need to move to a skilled nursing facility.
I have a few concerns with the senior community that you buy into. The possibility of losing everything because of mismanagement (hear about this a lot). The possibility that the care you need can not be given in that community - so you don’t end up aging in place (they typically have assisted living and memory but not skilled nursing.)
Some other creative ideas for senior communities sound nice, but have they survived the test of time?
Hoping @somemom sees this and can comment on family care homes
I have personally known people who own family care homes and people that were in them. It is similar to group homes for people who have intellectual disabilties. The ones I knew were very homey and nice and comfortable. There were 4 people and one full time employee 24/7. The only ones I know of were for people who had severe illness or dementia.
My great aunt was in a home like that. It seemed nice and she was happy there.
I have been looking only at one bedrooms (no den). As I said, here, north of Boston, I am not seeing the prices cited, but I haven’t looked at larger apartments. Drawback to one bedroom is one bathroom, shower, no tub. The apartments are gorgeous with large windows looking out on gardens. Most do a 90% refund at death or departure. Lack of flexibility is a big issue for me right now. I keep waiting for things to settle with kids now in mid-late 30’s! The community I liked best had a whole guest suite for family so I do not need a 2 bedroom.
A friend who is a retired MD found a family care home in our neighborhood. Her mom was mostly bedbound and needed a lot of help. The place she went to had 4 bedrooms for residents, each with its own bath. They had a dining room and the owner was a nurse and her H was a retired chef that cooked Japanese food. The friend & family were satisfied with the care she got there.
Another loved one was in a different larger care situation where they family and patient were very pleased with the care received.