When living independently becomes difficult or unsafe for you or a family member, it may be time for assisted living or another retirement community option. This assisted living overview can start you on the right path.
When Charlie Gould realized it might be time to explore alternative housing options for his 81-year-old mother and her husband, the couple had already tried in-home assistance at their condominium in Boca Raton, Fla. But some falls and other incidents had concerned Gould, and he wanted to be proactive, providing additional support for his folks before the need became critical.
So Gould, 53, a communications executive in New York City, reached out to Candy Cohn, a senior living advisor with Oasis Senior Advisors in Parkland, Florida. Cohn holds the certified senior advisor designation from the Society of Certified Senior Advisors. To earn that certification, she had to pass a rigorous exam and complete an ethics module.
Cohn, who describes herself as “a cross between a social worker and a real estate agent,” helps older adults or their families simplify the transition to senior living by learning about their needs and preferences, providing personalized options and information, and even taking future residents on tours of facilities that match their needs. Typically, a senior housing community will pay a senior placement advisor’s fee if the client decides to live there. A searchable database of certified senior advisors is available at CSA.us.
After touring three communities with his mom and Cohn, Gould’s opinion of assisted-living facilities was transformed. “I thought they would be dreary, institutional and sterile,” he says. “But in many ways, they were the opposite. They felt like places I’d like to be when I’m a little older.”
Indeed, today’s assisted-living community is not your grandfather’s nursing home. While communities vary depending on location and price point, many of the newer ones are glitzy and more closely resemble luxury hotels or condominiums than what you may typically think of as senior housing. Amenities such as pools, on-site salons, chef-prepared cuisine and a full slate of activities are common, and pets are often welcome.
Despite some initial reluctance to leave their home, Gould’s mother and stepfather are now comfortable in their assisted-living community, where they socialize, dine with new friends and enjoy activities such as on-site art shows. “There are new opportunities for them, and there’s a lower stress level for me,” Gould says. “Once they were in, I slept. It was the first time I had slept in a long time.”
Assisted living overview and options
Senior housing facilities come in several forms, each offering services that meet the specific needs of older adults. Independent living is for residents who don’t require assistance. They live on their own, but they have access to amenities and services such as meals and transportation. Independent-living facilities offer residents the opportunity to socialize and enjoy physical, cognitive and artistic activities to help keep them engaged and active.
Assisted living is for those who need some care, such as help with dressing, bathing or medication management. Residents live in their own apartments but have access to meals, assistance with personal care and 24-hour supervision.
Many facilities offer a full continuum of care, incorporating both independent and assisted living and adding memory and skilled nursing care to the palette of services available to older adults.
As the nation’s population ages and demand for senior housing has grown, so has the number of assisted living units in the U.S. According to the latest data available from the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC), the number of assisted-living units increased from 514,000 in 2013 to 714,300 in the fourth quarter of 2023.
Rick Wigginton, chief sales officer for Brookdale Senior Living, a Nashville-based company that operated 647 senior communities in 41 states as of the end of 2024, says the biggest mistake he sees assisted-living residents make is waiting too long to move. “People bring services into the home to enable them to stay in that home longer, but they don’t realize the cost of becoming more socially isolated,” he says. “If you’re dependent on someone to clean your house, pick you up for transportation or do food prep, you’re making your life smaller.”
Wigginton says that admission standards for assisted living vary from state to state. The process begins with an evaluation by a nurse or other medical professional to determine an older adult’s current and future needs and whether the community they’re considering can meet those needs. To qualify, a resident typically must require some type of assistance, whether it’s with dispensing medication, bathing, getting dressed or certain other activities.
Assisted living offers older adults safety and security, personalized care, medication management, access to health care, nutritious meals, and peace of mind for both residents and their families. According to the National Institute on Aging, older adults are vulnerable to loneliness and social isolation, which can not only impact their well-being but also increase their risk for heart disease, depression and cognitive decline. But well-run assisted-living communities can help minimize loneliness through classes, group entertainment opportunities and communal dining.
Learn more about senior living options in Seniors Guide
Paying for the move
No assisted living overview is complete without a look at costs and payment. It is not cheap. According to the NIC, the average monthly rent for assisted living in the fourth quarter of 2024 was $6,685 nationally, up from $4,504 a decade earlier. Wigginton says that monthly fees for assisted living at Brookdale properties range from $3,500 to $7,000, depending on factors including the location, the size of the apartment and the amenities available.
The monthly fee quoted by an assisted-living community is a baseline price only, so prospective residents need to ask about the pricing structure and the cost of additional services they may need, such as personal aides, salon services and meals for guests.
Many assisted-living residents are cash payers, relying on savings or the proceeds from the sale of their home to cover their monthly payments. According to Lisa McCracken, the NIC’s head of research and analytics, most residents stay an average of two to two-and-a-half years, so savings may be sufficient to cover costs.
Long-term-care insurance can also help pay for assisted living, but a policy may be expensive. Premiums vary based on the amount of coverage as well as an insured person’s age and health. According to William R. Dyess, president of Dyess Insurance Services in Boca Raton, Florida, a husband and wife, each 55 years old and in good health, should expect to pay between $5,018 and $6,325 per year for a joint long-term-care policy that covers up to $165,000 and comes with an inflation rider that helps protect against rising costs.
Generally, the older you are when you buy the policy, the higher the premium will be. If a couple are both 65 and in good health when they purchase a policy, for example, the annual premium would range from $7,137 to $12,250 for similar coverage, depending on the insurance company issuing the policy.
Dyess says that a long-term-care policy will kick in only when a health care provider determines that someone needs assistance with at least two activities of daily living or has a severe cognitive impairment. The six essential activities of daily living include bathing, dressing, eating, getting in or out of bed or a chair, using the toilet, and controlling bladder and bowel function, according to the National Institutes of Health.
To find a reputable agent, you can search the database for insurance professionals who hold the Certification in Long-Term Care designation, which they earn after completing a training program and exam.
Although Medicare covers short-term care in a skilled-nursing facility, it does not cover the cost of assisted living. Similarly, according to the National Council on Aging, Medicaid does not cover the room-and-board portion of assisted-living expenses, but many states offer Medicaid waiver programs that can help cover other assisted-living costs for those who are eligible.
For more of an assisted living overview, explore SeniorsGuide.com.
For more financial insights, browse our Paying for Senior Living series
Robyn A. Friedman is a contributing writer at Kiplinger Personal Finance magazine. For more on this and similar money topics, visit Kiplinger.com.
©2025 The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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