New Resource Helps Senior Living Professionals Share Sector’s Value

Read this important McKnights Senior Living article from July 30, by Kimberly Bonvissuto:

“A new resource is available to help senior living sales and marketing professionals and others educate consumers about how to compare costs when considering a move to a senior living community versus remaining in a house in the greater community.

“The Economic Case for Senior Living,” a new issue brief from the American Seniors Housing Association, challenges the long-standing perception that senior living is significantly more expensive than aging in place. The analysis prepared by Daniel M. Bernstein, CFA, concluded that the “sticker shock” associated with senior living often comes from comparing an all-inclusive monthly fee with only a portion of the actual costs of maintaining a home.

“Families often compare the monthly cost of senior living to only the out-of-pocket expenses of staying at home,” ASHA President and CEO David Schless said in a statement. “This research demonstrates that when homeowners account for maintenance, insurance, taxes, home healthcare, and the value of the home itself, the economics look very different.”

The upshot for senior living operators is that their sales and marketing professions need to be well-versed about the financial side of the senior living decision process for older adults and their families, Schless told McKnight’s Senior Living.

“This information can be used to help educate prospective residents who are not likely to be viewing their financial situation in an accurate way,” he said. “This financial distortion for some results in delayed decision-making.”

The issue brief comes on the heels of another ASHA report with a similar goal, albeit a different initial audience. “Home Care Today: Benefits, Tradeoffs, and Considerations for Older Adults and Their Families,” written for consumers and released earlier this year, featured research by ATI Advisory. It is available as a PDF on WhereYouLiveMatters.com, ASHA’s consumer website. ASHA will use the information in the latest brief to add content to the site.

ASHA produced similar reports in 2024 and 2017.

Economic considerations

Consumers need to know that when they are comparing housing and care decisions, they must consider the following, according to the report:

• Total cost, including care and housing
• The predictability of those costs, including their potential exposure to financial shocks
• Care scalability, or the ability for their future needs to be met efficiently
• The potential impact on their quality of life and health outcomes

The report also highlights the role of home equity in retirement planning, noting that a house represents the largest financial asset for many older adults and can help finance future care while reducing the financial uncertainty associated with maintaining a home.

“Senior living is more than a housing choice; it’s a value proposition that combines predictable costs, integrated services and opportunities for healthy aging,” Schless said. “As housing-related expenses continue to rise, families need a complete picture of what aging at home actually costs.”

Cost comparisons

Living at home, according to the brief, exposes older adults to ongoing and often unpredictable financial risk, including major repairs, rising insurance premiums (up 17% since the 2024 issue brief), increasing home owners’ association fees (up 10% to 20% from the prior report), special assessments and potential costly home modifications necessary for aging in place.

In contrast, the brief argues, senior living communities take those uncertainties and fold them into a single, more predictable monthly cost.

In addition, when including the cost of a home health aide, living at home exceeds the cost of independent living and almost equals the cost of assisted living, according to the report. And as care needs increase, so do costs for additional services, often requiring coordination among multiple providers, which can lead to fragmented services and a burden on family caregivers. The cost of a home health aide, according to the 2025 Genworth CareScout Cost of Care Survey, was $35 per hour (up from $33 in the last survey), and the hourly cost for a private-duty nurse was $90, with a median visit cost of $160 for short-term clinical needs.

The ASHA report calculated that the cost of living in a house, along with a modest level of home health, was 30% higher than the cost of independent living and equal to almost 90% of the cost of assisted living. Older adults needing significant home healthcare — beyond 20 hours per week — would see their cost of living exceed the cost of both assisted living and memory care.

Senior living communities, on the other hand, offer integrated care environments that bundle housing, services and healthcare support, creating efficiencies and a manageable cost trajectory as care needs increase, the brief noted.

Other “meaningful benefits” offered in senior living include social interaction, structured activities, improved nutrition and professional oversight that led to better physical and mental health outcomes. Prior research has shown that living in senior living helps older adults live well longer.

The brief will be available for purchase in the ASHA online bookstore.”