Tools

Independent living. Assisted Living. Memory Care. Skilled Nursing. What’s the best choice? There’s no right or wrong answer and considerations are different for everyone. The good news is there are senior living communities for every taste, need and budget. These checklists for senior living can help you sort through all the options and help determine what may be best for you.

• If you think a loved one may benefit from senior living, get started by reading, Understanding the Senior Living Landscape.
• Our comprehensive Senior Care Continuum Guide provides a helpful overview of each senior living option.
• Four factors that will help you decide what’s best for you: living in a senior living community or staying in an existing house.

Is it safe to remain in your house? What are some signs that indicate when it may be time to seek help? Whether deciding for yourself or a loved one, these tools will help you determine if it’s time to consider a senior community.

• Self-discovery tools to help you decide when is the time right?
• When assessing the safety of a senior’s home, pinpoint exterior and interior risks with this home safety checklist
• Charting a loved one’s progress regularly with an Activities of Daily Living (ADL) checklist allows you to take stock of their quality of life, so you can find the right help as soon as it’s needed. ADL Checklist

Caring for an aging loved one can be amazing and rewarding, but it isn’t easy. Most family caregivers today are adult daughters who have their own children, their own jobs and their own homes to maintain. Many find themselves overburdened and overstressed, feeling too guilty to take time out for themselves.

Sound familiar? If you are caring for – or concerned about – an aging parent or loved one, a senior living community may be a good solution for your family. Senior living communities offer residents a safe, engaging and fulfilling lifestyle – whatever the need may be. And for you, they offer the peace of mind that comes from knowing your loved one is eating right, making friends and engaging in the things they love.

Learn more about caregiving, caregiver burnout and when it might be time to talk to your loved one about senior living.

• Find out more about which type of caregiver you are
• Celebrating caregivers! Here we share some inspiring facts about how fellow caregivers support their loved ones. Caregivers are amazing
• Take this quiz to see where (or if) you fall on the caregiver burnout scale — and find out how you can take better care of yourself. Caregiver Burnout Quiz
• Talking with aging parents about senior living is difficult. We’ll help make it easier with our Talking With Your Parents Guide

Cost is important, but so is understanding the value of senior living. We get why most people say they want to age in their own home. But they often don’t fully consider what that means – especially regarding cost. Most are surprised to learn that senior living is more affordable than they think, especially when compared to the true, hidden costs of staying at home.

• Compare the cost of remaining in your house vs a senior living community. Comparison Checklist
• There are ways to offset the cost of senior living for qualified veterans and their spouses. Learn more here

The best way to see if a senior living community is right for you is to visit. A visit will give you great insight into the lifestyle and culture. You’ll have the opportunity to meet and talk with residents and staff. But before you go, prepare. We’ve put together “visit checklists” to help guide you on your visit. Take notes and hang on to the completed checklists. They’ll be a handy way to compare communities when you’re ready to take the next step.

• Independent Living Checklist
• Continuing Care Retirement Community Checklist
• Assisted Living Checklist
• Memory Care Checklist

Moving at any age can be stressful – especially if you’ve lived in the same house for decades. But the reward is the lifestyle that awaits in your new senior living community. Fortunately, there are a host of organizations that specialize in helping seniors downsize, move and transition into a senior living community. But if you decide to DIY, we’ve pulled together valuable information and checklists to help ensure you’ve thought of everything when making the move to a senior living community.

• Tips on downsizing to a retirement community checklist
• Making the move to senior living checklist
• Learn the upside of downsizing