How to Evaluate a Continuing Care Retirement Community

A continuing care retirement community (CCRC) provides a continuum of care for seniors who live independently or who require various levels of assistance.

Difficulty: Moderately challenging

Instructions

1. Take the CCRC's marketing tour and observe the upkeep and safety of the facility. Does it appear clean, and are the grounds kept up? Are there appropriate hand rails or grab rails in the bathing areas and hallways? Are the sprinkler systems and fire extinguishers easily accessible?

2. Verify the type of training given to the staff. Ask to see training policy and procedure manuals to make sure that the facility does indeed train the way it says it does.

3. Ask if the facility does national criminal background checks on staff. Some only do local or state background checks. Also, what type of pre-employment drug screening does it do, and is drug screening ongoing?

4. Compare staff numbers with other CCRCs you are considering, looking at the number of staff on each shift for the weekend and weekdays.

5. Find out about the types of food choices a facility offers and whether it is able to accommodate special dietary needs.

6. Be sure to ask about the reciprocal agreement that the CCRC has with other CCRCs for skilled nursing or assisted living wings within the communities, should those wings be full at the time a senior needs to make that transition.

7. Look at the range of activities on site and off site, and see if they meet the senior's needs. Are there activities off site at least twice a week? Does the facility offer activities such as religious services, lectures, discussion groups, and arts and crafts classes on site?

8. Inquire if a facility has a wellness center that can meet clinical needs such as memory impairment services or weight control and blood pressure checks. Also, how close is the nearest hospital in case of an emergency?

Tips & Warnings

• Find out whether the CCRC uses volunteers and what type of training they receive.
• If there is an Alzheimer's unit within the assisted living or skilled nursing area, staffing should be higher.
• Remember that once you buy into a CCRC, you will not get the full purchase price back if you decide to sell. You will probably get up to 75 percent back, and that is only if you sell the unit less than five years from the date of purchase for a limited period of time.

Who Can Help Sponsored

• How to Lose 30+lbs Guaranteed. Try it Free.

[JBrianRN]

on 11/1/2007 A CCRC is essentially a health insurance policy superimposed on a rental real estate business. The rental fee and down payments are part of a complex formula centered around longevity. Actuarial estimates of the longevity of residents are at first predicated on the industry at large and after 7 years, on the facility's own statistics. The gamble is the facility guarantees the same monthly fee regardless of the required level of care. Therefore, rents are predicated on a statistical analysis which places the resident expenses on a curve. If a resident does not live longer than 7 years, the facility will likely come out ahead. If the resident lives longer than 7 years, the resident comes out ahead.
To be sure and make the most of an investment (and it is an investment) in a CCRC, most people will benefit most by moving in early- in their mid 60's, not later in their 70's or 80's.

[LizRoot15w]

on 9/12/2007 In step 5, you recommend three ONLINE resources, but then give phone numbers but no websites.

on 3/21/2006 Visit the health care unit by yourself, unannounced. Walk the halls and get a feel for the environment. Are patients left to sit alone with no way to call staff? Is it noisy? Does it smell? Are the bathrooms large enough to accommodate walkers or wheelchairs? Are there enough windows so that patients can see outside? Keep in mind you could very well end up in a health care facility, so it is as important as the other levels of accommodations.