Older adults often require more support than their family members can provide. The effects of aging can manifest in many different symptoms, including cognitive impairment and motor function challenges. Older adults may require increasing levels of support as they continue to age.
Planning for the possibility of intensive support needs later in life can help older adults achieve a sense of comfort, as they know they have the resources set aside for their care needs. The type of facility where someone lives plays a major role in the financial resources that they require for comfort later in life. Some people move into continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) or life plan communities instead of assisted living facilities or nursing homes.
What sets a CCRC apart from better-known or more traditional elder care facilities?
The goal of CCRC is to remain at one location
Many adults move to an assisted living facility at some point during their retirement and may then eventually transition to a nursing home when they begin struggling with independent living. It can be destabilizing and expensive to move from one elder care facility to another. The older and more vulnerable someone has become, the more disruptive and traumatic relocation might be.
A CCRC is a single facility that provides multiple different options for the support of an older adult. That makes them different from nursing homes. So does the payment structure for a CCRC. According to the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), individuals pay a large deposit, which may range from around $40,000 to several million dollars. They then pay a monthly fee to the facility based on the support that they require.
Adults can enjoy apartment-style assisted living or far more intensive nursing home-level supports at different points in their golden years as their needs change. Those who live in a CCRC often have an easier time adjusting as their support needs change later in life. They may also have an easier time maintaining a reliable visitation schedule with loved ones, as the travel time and rules for visits won’t shift the way they would from one facility to another.
Those who think that living in a CCRC would be a reasonable solution for meeting support needs during their golden years may need to consider those plans when reviewing or establishing estate planning documents. Thinking about long-term support needs may help those preparing for retirement put the right protections in place for themselves as they age.
