| Perhaps you're determined to spend as much of your | | | | facilities and culture. They range from casually |
| retirement in your own home as you possibly can. | | | | friendly, with active social programs and communal |
| Have you asked yourself, however, how you will | | | | dining to more formal, with single-family homes |
| manage if your health begins to deteriorate? Many | | | | protective of their residents' privacy. If you're looking |
| Baby Boomers contemplating retirement and weighing | | | | for a continuing care retirement community, there |
| their options have decided that the advantages of | | | | are a few things you should consider. |
| finding retirement communities which offer multiple | | | | Many of these communities require retirees to have |
| living arrangements far outweigh the disadvantages | | | | assets amounting to 300% of their entrance fees, |
| of having to leave their familiar homes. | | | | depending on the sort of home chosen. Entrance |
| These people are the ones who have found | | | | fees can run between $20,000-$200,000. Retirees will |
| "continuing care retirement communities" in which to | | | | also need continuing incomes totaling 200% of their |
| spend their leisure years. Continuing care retirement | | | | monthly, or homeowner's, fees. These fees cover |
| communities are those which offer a variety of | | | | expenses like property taxes, insurance, utilities, cable |
| residential and medical care options to accommodate | | | | TV, use of the retirement community's |
| the future needs of their residents. Continuing care | | | | transportation services, and meals. They will certainly |
| retirement communities usually include: | | | | rise in communities community which charge additional |
| * Independent living residences (either single-family | | | | fees for medical care. |
| homes or apartments) for those retirees who are still | | | | It's critical for you to know in advance whether a |
| self-sufficient; | | | | continuing care retirement community charges |
| * Assisted living facilities for retirees who need just a | | | | additional fees for medical care. Some don't, but they |
| little with routine tasks like bathing and dressing | | | | do help the charge residents higher monthly fees to |
| themselves; and | | | | compensate. Others provide a limited amount of |
| * Full nursing facilities for residents where reached | | | | medical care, but will raise the fees as soon as that |
| the point where they need full-time medical care. | | | | limit is reached. Still others charge higher monthly fees |
| What are the advantages of choosing a continuing | | | | for residents in assisted living apartments in nursing |
| care retirement community rather than an active | | | | care than they do for their independent retirees. |
| adult community designed for self-sufficient retirees? | | | | Finally, if you want to join one of these communities, |
| One of the biggest is that living in a continuing care | | | | do it while your health is still reasonably good. Many |
| retirement community means you'll never again have | | | | of them reject applicants who may going to cost |
| to uproot yourself as you did when you sold your | | | | them significantly in medical care. You may cringe at |
| pre-retirement home. You can stay in a continuing | | | | the thought of leaving your own home while you're |
| care retirement community for the rest of your life! | | | | still independent, but doing so is the best way to |
| Like all retirement communities, continuing care | | | | guarantee that you will be cared for when you can |
| retirement communities vary tremendously in their | | | | no longer care for yourself! |