What Does “Independent Living” Mean in Senior Living?
As a follow up to my recent blog posts on the challenges of comparing continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) and comparing rental retirement communities to CCRCs, I wanted to share with you the different ways that the term "independent living" is used in the senior living industry. Spoiler alert: It is a phrase that is [...]
Senior Year: Blending Senior Living with Lifelong Learning
It’s graduation season, and high schools and universities across the country are celebrating the accomplishments of their students. But for many people, their love of learning doesn’t end in young adulthood. I read an article this week about a 93-year-old retired optometrist named Lewis Taub, who has just audited his 50th class at Skidmore College, [...]
Why Is Comparing CCRCs So Difficult?
You’ve examined the various senior living options, from remaining in your current home to moving to a age-restricted retirement community, and you’ve decided that the continuum of care and amenities offered by a continuing care retirement community (CCRC, or life plan community) is the right decision for you. Now, it’s time to choose the CCRC [...]
Comparing Rental Retirement Communities and Life Plan Communities
When comparing rental retirement communities and life plan communities, aka, CCRC or “continuing care retirement community," there are some important details to consider. Sometimes the options look quite similar at a glance, and some of the distinguishing characteristics may not always be immediately obvious. In this post I want to provide some clarity about the [...]
Which is Better: An Independent Caregiver or Home Care Agency?
Long-term care is generally defined as a range of supportive services needed to meet an individual’s personal care needs over an extended period of time. Often, long-term care is not medical care; instead, it is help with everyday personal tasks, sometimes referred to as activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs), although [...]
In a Good Place: Enjoying Retirement in a CCRC
Recently, I had the pleasure of speaking with two residents of Henry Ford Village (HFV) in Dearborn, Michigan. Let’s call them Dan and Mary. They were not a couple but had become friends over their time living in this continuing care retirement community (CCRC, or life plan community). I asked Dan and Mary the two [...]