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But seriously, who on SSA without 500,000+ in the bank can spend 4 to 7000 dollars a month on themselves just to eat and sleep. Not in any way realistic. I think these places are praying on seniors who made $300,000 selling the house they bought for $12,000 in the 50s and will all be closed in 10 years. Thats how my mom was able to be in assisted living for 3 years.
She didn't know that the week she died of Covid was literally the week her money had run out. Could my sister, 79 and still working 70 hrs a week pay 3,000/month for my mother to stay there?
Generations now will never have a home they can sell and make hundreds of thousands on. I'm 70 with, no lie, 23 years left on my mortgage.
I've also seen where aging in place really means "ask your daughter for help." When you live alone and can no longer carry in groceries, or wash the kitchen floor alone or change your sheets, and no half million in the bank to pay for assisted or home care - NOT covered by insurance, its nursing home. We wonder why medicaid is running dry? And the taxes on my $5/hr is what has fed social security and we wonder why its running out. Very few earn as little as an FBI agent. Look at their saleries of less than $150,000 which is peanuts for running the FBI! (Look up Wrays salary.) But another story but does explain why there is no social security left. Nurses now make $100/hr in some places. Oh well...but there is no money for aging in place. Esp without family, kids, healthy spouse. Assisted living won't take you if you need assistance in your apartment. Wheelchair? They can't be taking people to the BR. Thats way beyond the assisted living contract.
I was told by a senior help organization that my insurance will pay for someone to bathe me and take my BP once a week for about 6 weeks after a major medical thing, but even they won't even make me a sandwich. He confirmed that as long as I was clean, they didn't care if I had not eaten or my sheets were 6 months on my bed. He was adamantly rude. Gets paid to help seniors. 5 minutes into my first call with them but my 10th number that day.
We shouldn't end up in a nursing home because we can't change our bed or wash our kitchen floor. I'd be running my (minimal) home graphic design business (I'm 70) from a nursing home bed. Now how crazy is that? I pay $600/year just to rent the software I need but dont even use every month.
Your clients are so fortunate to have 4 to 7,000 a month to throw away? My income is much less than that on SSA and as disabled my whole life, I barely have a comma in my bank balance.
It was weird to read spend 4000/month as if that was doable and NBD. In the 70s, I was making $5/hour as an RN. That doesn't come close to todays prices, even if I had saved 20% of my income for retirement and who can ever do that? And with social security based on that right? My dad never made more than $10,000 a year. Not enough taxes on that to fund our current retirement pool. Is that a separate conversation. I don't think so when we talk about what medicare won't pay for to keep us independent.
But we just stay grateful and sleep on gross sheets. Aging in place is really a misnomer. There are no social supports for that. Its just talk. It doesnt really exist and how realistic is it to live in assisted living without an inheritance?
Your clients are really beyond fortunate and represent the top 20%?
Sorry, I read "concierge" and laughed out loud.
Replies to "But seriously, who on SSA without 500,000+ in the bank can spend 4 to 7000 dollars..."
I did the math. I spend about 6000 a month in food gas clothing mortgage real estate tax and eating out. If I lived alone in one of those places it would be 4500 with my significant other and a 2 bedroom apartment it would be 6700. We could do it.
People who only have SS will struggle. That's a fact.
I don't have the answers. Like I said we have to be creative. I'm a daughter and my sister is a daughter. It's is hard to resist being the caretaker but I won't because of my own health issues and my sister shouldn't so she says healthy.
I'm sorry that the concierge term, and the rates mentioned make you think senior/assisted living is out of reach except for the rich. While it is true that many well-advertised places charge very high prices, many of our facilities in Minnesota have 10-40% of the units dedicated to subsidized housing - meeting HUD low-income qualifications, where one pays a fixed portion of their income & the balance is covered.
When my Mom entered, she was definitely not in the "top 20%" probably more like the bottom 25-30%. At first she only needed an apartment with housekeeping and could contract for other services as she became more frail. Using the equity from selling her mobile home, she could demonstrate the ability to "self-pay" from her SS, tiny pension and savings for at least 6 months, and didn't have to wait for a subsidized unit to come available. Then, when her assets were below the designated limit (around 5000 then) she qualified for subsidy right away. As she needed ever more services, we qualified her for Medical Assistance to cover her bathing, meds, etc. The only thing she had to cover above the rent was her meals plan, and the amount the rent subsidy left enough of her income to cover it.
I know the situation is the same because my sister was financial/medical POA for a friend, and she secured a place for him this fall in the same building, starting on subsidy right away. His wait on their list was under 6 months; unfortunately he passed away the week he was to move in.
On the other hand, my cousin spent her last last months in what we called "a ladies' home." There were many when I was growing up - they are more rare now, but can be found. She shared a home with the owner and 3 other women with similar care needs. The owner was a retired but still licensed RN, and she had aides with her around the clock to assist. It cost my cousin $2200 a month in San Antonio - a combination of her SS and small savings (like you, she did not own her home outright).
So depending on where you live, you may want to check.
My brothers son was born paraplegic and requires assistance everyday. My brothers income has never been good because he takes jobs that allows him to care for his son who has tried to work but his health issues keep getting in the way. I see your dilemma. But many people who are average people could afford these apartments. Maybe it is because they sold the home.
Nurses deserve to be paid a professional wage. They do ALL the work in the hospital and their education supports that.
I don't believe the current generation won't have homes to sell. When I bought my first home the interest rate was 15%. What is different now than then is we didn't have talking heads telling us how bad we had it. We just did it.
Yes an I'll and aging population is a problem. I both those things so I'm not pointing figures
Also a home is a very poor investment if you don't pay cash for it. In most environments you will pay for that home more than twice because of interest and the up keep is expensive. Sometimes I think let the landlord deal with the headaches and put that money you send in up in another more liquid investments.
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@bebold, I totally agree with you 100%. I certainly don't have $4,000-$7,000 a month for assisted living, so I don't know what aging in place will look like for me when I'm unable to change my own sheets! Anyway, I like where I live and I'd like to live out my remaining days here.