Paying for assisted living requires planning and research. reports that the median cost of assisted living facilities is $6,200 per month. Meanwhile, the report that the median stay lasts about 22 months. Together, that means you’d need approximately $136,400 to afford your stay. If your loved one gets to enjoy life a little longer or you live in a more expensive part of the country, you could be looking at a higher bill. And these costs are only expected to rise.
“It can be more challenging without decades of , but it’s still possible to find workable solutions by getting creative and consulting professionals who understand the range of available programs and strategies,” says , CEO of San Francisco-based Waterlily, a website that uses AI to predict long-term care needs. “Some families combine resources, sometimes renting out a parent’s home for monthly income that helps with assisted living bills.”
Here, we’ll explore the costs of and discuss ways families can manage this significant expense later in life.
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How Much Does Assisted Living Cost?
Assisted living is expensive, with a median monthly cost of $6,200.
Assisted living costs compared to other senior care options
However, compare that to the average monthly fee for :
— Semi-private nursing home room: $9,581
— Private nursing home room: $10,798
Assisted living, when medically appropriate, can be a more economical alternative to a nursing home.
may also save you money compared to assisted living. typically start at around $35 per hour, depending on the requested services and your location.
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The challenge of cost transparency
However, finding transparent pricing and what those costs all include at assisted living facilities can be quite challenging. According to a recent U.S. 草莓传媒 senior living cost transparency consumer survey, 41% say it’s difficult or very difficult to understand what’s included in the cost estimates they see online. As a result, 57% of consumers say that it’s difficult or very difficult to determine whether assisted living communities are within their budget. In fact, less than 20% said that it’s easy.
“The price that you may see online is often a base rate, and then care level charges may be added on top of that, depending on what your loved one needs,” explains Christen Bergeron, founder of Navigating Senior Living. “As you’re searching, it’s important to ask questions about what is included in the rate that you’re seeing.”
If you’re having trouble researching the concrete monthly price of an assisted living facility and everything that cost includes, it isn’t just you. It can be challenging to nail down a price.
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Assisted Living Costs in Each State
Costs can vary according to many factors (more on that later), but location is one of them. Here are the average monthly costs for assisted living for each state.
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Planning for Senior Care
The high cost of assisted living emphasizes the need to . Whether you have money saved for the future or are still getting your finances in order, help is available. For instance, the Area Agency on Aging is a nonprofit organization dedicated to addressing the needs and concerns of older adults. They can help you answer questions such as:
— Which facility type is right for me?
— How will we pay for care? What will insurance cover?
— How should we plan for long-term care?
You may also want to consider consulting with an or a .
also requires an honest assessment of how much you can afford to put away on a monthly basis. Then consider what you will need for assisted living care. Start with some simple steps:
— List your net income and current expenses.
— Identify all your savings sources.
— Write down goals, including the quality of life you want.
— Assess what’s realistic based on your financial capabilities.
“Assisted living doesn’t have to wipe out your savings if you plan wisely,” Vittayarukskul says. “Don’t wait until a crisis forces your hand. Get a road map in place now, so your family’s finances and relationship dynamics aren’t derailed later.”
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How to Pay for Assisted Living
There are several options when it comes to getting help to pay for assisted living:
— Long-term care insurance
— Life insurance
— Private health insurance
— Pensions, annuities and investments
— Veterans benefits
— Financing
— State and social assistance
Long-term care insurance
are designed to cover the costs of long-term care needs. These insurance plans can help pay for services such as occupational therapy and and help with .
Premiums for a 55-year-old single man are currently about $950 a year, according to the That will cover $165,000 worth of benefits at the time of the policy’s purchase. If benefits increase by 3% annually, that would mean getting about $400,500 at age 85. While such coverage can be helpful, it should be just one part of your overall strategy for paying for assisted living or other .
Life insurance
You may be able to cash out your and use this money to pay for assisted living. If you have whole life insurance, you can surrender it for its cash value tax-free. Consult with your insurance agent to determine the value of your policy.
While this option can be a valuable source of cash if needed, it may not be the optimal choice for individuals who rely on this life insurance to provide a nest egg for their loved ones.
Private health insurance
Some private health insurers cover at least part of the services you need in assisted living. You’ll need to check with your benefits provider for details about what’s included in your policy.
You may want to explore hybrid policies, such as a life insurance policy with a long-term care rider. A benefit of these plans is that you can access the money you’ve put in, or leave it to your heirs if you never need long-term care.
Pensions, annuities and investments
A pension from your employer can be a valuable source of money to pay for assisted living.
For those who don’t have a pension, a fixed annuity can be helpful. This financial product can be set up to pay you a regular sum now or in the future. You can purchase an annuity with a single payment or make contributions over time. The main advantage of an annuity is that it provides a source of retirement income. On the downside, annuities, at best, have a low rate of earned interest, and you must wait until you’re 59 1/2 to make penalty-free withdrawals.
Investments, such as stock market accounts, can grow considerably over time and provide a good source of income when you head to assisted living. However, the economy and the market can be volatile, and you must be prepared for fluctuations. If you count on these to pay for assisted living and need the money when the market is down, you could get less than if you waited for a strong market.
Veterans benefits
Veterans and their spouses may benefit from Veterans Aid & Attendance benefits and Housebound allowance.
“This is a monthly tax-free benefit that’s paid directly to the veteran or to their surviving spouse, and it can be used to pay towards home care, assisted living and care in a nursing home,” says Bergeron. “It really makes a meaningful difference towards that monthly expense of paying for care, and a lot of families aren’t aware that this benefit exists.”
These average around $2,500 per month for assistance with long-term care, including assisted living. Covered services may include:
— 24/7 nursing and medical care
—
— Help with daily activities, such as bathing or medication management
— Comfort care and pain management
— Support for
If you’re able to get a $2,500 a month VA benefit coupled with your Social Security, it will probably allow you to stay in an assisted living facility that costs $4,000 to $5,000 a month, says , an elder law attorney in Key Biscayne, Florida.
Typically, “these places have a dining room with a menu, many more activities and a van that allows residents to be driven to a grocery store nearby,” Reaves says.
Financing
Financing for assisted living can be complicated, especially if you don’t have a substantial amount saved to cover this expense. Because assisted living facilities are nearly always set up as rental units, a mortgage is unlikely to be an option to finance your fees; instead, you’ll need cash on hand to cover your expenses month to month. If you don’t have a big nest egg, you can explore some other financing options, including:
— Selling your home and using the proceeds to pay your rent and other fees at an assisted living facility
— Setting up a bridge loan, though this is a potentially risky, short-term loan option that uses the family home as collateral. This option can offer seniors in an urgent situation the means to pay for care quickly, as this loan product “bridges” the time between when you need the money and when the home can sell, freeing up the cash equity you have in the property.
— Getting a reverse mortgage, in which you sell your home back to the bank and they pay you in monthly installments, creating working capital for paying for care
State assistance
“Some states have formal programs that will help pay the assisted living bill,” says , a certified elder law attorney in Fairfax, Virginia. “For example, in Virginia, there’s a program called the Auxiliary Grant that will help pay for an (assisted living facility), but not every ALF participates in this program, and those that do typically only have one or two AG beds available, which tend to not get frequent turnover because they’re occupied for lengthy periods by relatively healthy individuals.”
In other words, many of these state programs have lengthy waitlists.
Social programs that provide free support and resources that may be able to help you finance assisted living include:
— PACE. The provides comprehensive medical and social services to some older adults.
— SHIP. The provides personalized health insurance counseling to , helping them locate services and resources for care in their communities.
— Social Security Disability Insurance. If you have a disability that requires assistance with activities of daily living, you may be eligible to receive Social Security disability benefits from the federal government. These benefits can help offset some of the costs associated with assisted living.
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Does Medicare Pay for Assisted Living?
is the federal health insurance program for Americans age 65 and older (and some younger people with specific disabilities, such as end-stage renal disease). Medicare . Specifically, it doesn’t cover what’s known as custodial care, which can include bathing, dressing and other activities of daily living. , offered through private insurers, may help cover some custodial care costs. Check your plan details to see if it covers any costs associated with assisted living.
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Medicaid and the Waiver Program
, a joint federal and state program, provides health care coverage to certain beneficiaries, including low-income adults, children, pregnant women, the elderly and individuals with disabilities. some costs associated with assisted living in certain states. However, even in those cases, you have to your assets several years in advance.
In some states, certain assisted living communities do take Medicaid waivers as a source of payment. This provision of federal law allows states to offer certain benefits and services to specific subgroups of Medicaid beneficiaries.
If you live in a state with Medicaid waivers and find an assisted living community that accepts Medicaid, be prepared to provide detailed information to document your eligibility. This includes verification of income and other financial resources, a birth certificate, a Social Security card, a marriage certificate or divorce decree and Medicare or other health insurance cards.
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Assisted Living Costs Factors
The four main factors that determine the cost of assisted living are:
— How much assistance you require
— The types of amenities or luxury experiences you want
— The location of the assisted living community
— Whether you’re single or living as a couple
How much assistance you require
“What’s important to distinguish is the word ‘assisted,’ which means you are moving to a place where you can feed yourself, walk or wheelchair yourself and are not randomly incontinent,” Reaves says. “If any of these things are missing, you will either be asked to hire an aide or go to a .”
Reaves says that assisted living facilities evaluate your capabilities before allowing you to join. She notes that the prices depend on the level of care required and that services are priced 脿 la carte. It may be possible to reduce costs by working with the assisted living community to limit optional services, such as continence services.
“If you need medications administered, the rules dictate a nurse must do it, hence an extra charge. If you need help in the shower, that is another extra charge,” Reaves says. “If you need an escort to take you to meals, (that’s) an extra charge.”
She says that a $3,500 monthly room rent can suddenly be $5,500 a month due to the costs.
“One thing to know about any ALF is that prices are negotiable,” Reaves adds. “Most places have more rooms than people, so don’t be afraid to ask for a discount. I do it for all my clients, and I’ve always received one.”
Types of amenities
Not surprisingly, what you’re getting for the money you’re paying is very important to consumers looking for assisted living. In U.S. 草莓传媒’s senior living cost transparency consumer survey, quality of care was the leading factor for 48% of respondents when weighing whether the money was worth the cost.
Roughly one-third of consumers also rated continuum of care, community location, staff empathy and expertise, quality of food and dining and community safety and security as being important factors to consider. Many (63%) said that the cost, however, would be the most important factor to consider. That makes sense since some assisted living facilities are simply going to be cost-prohibitive.
If money is no object, , which can cost several thousand dollars a month, offer a variety of amenities, including multiple dining venues, upscale housing accommodations, luxurious common spaces and a wide array of activities.
However, if you’re on a budget, consider more modest communities that include the basics and what you’ll need to live and enjoy day-to-day life.
Those more modest communities do exist, Reaves says. But they’re often smaller assisted living centers, which means fewer openings.
“ALFs come in all shapes, sizes and costs,” Reaves says. “I have seen several in the $3,000 range that are older homes which have been remodeled to handle up to five or seven people. Usually, the bathrooms are shared, but there are rooms with private bathrooms.”
She says the best way to find the affordable communities, the gems everyone wants, is to go to a search engine and type in a phrase like “ALFs for $3,000 a month” and see what pops up. She also says that working with an online placement company can be one way to go, but she has been unimpressed with what some of the most prominent names in the industry can offer.
In addition, you can use to see what’s available in your area.
Reaves also recommends finding a local broker, which she says can often be done through a search engine like Google or Bing. She usually types something like “local ALF assisted living center brokers.”
“Local brokers know these home-based ALFs. The ones I have visited have been professional, clean and usually run by nurses or PAs (physician assistants),” Reaves says.
Location
Of course, as with most forms of housing, costs for assisted living vary depending on the location. If you’re looking to cut costs and a move is realistic, consider an area with lower fees. At the same time, if you are on a budget, you will want a community that offers modest accommodations.
Assisted living costs for couples
Costs for are often based on individual living situations. For instance, if one spouse resides in assisted living and pays $6,200 per month while the other maintains the family home, costs add up fast. In that scenario, it may be more cost-effective for both spouses to live in assisted living or for both to remain at home and for the spouse who needs it.
If a couple is living together in assisted living, they may be able to share the rent cost. However, depending on the services each requires, additional fees may vary widely.
What Assisted Living Costs Include and Exclude
Assisted living costs typically include:
— Room and board
— Housekeeping services
— Social, educational and at the facility
— Depending on the community, costs may also include assistance with activities of daily living
— Transportation (to doctor appointments, grocery stores and other destinations)
— Laundry services
— Meals
Assisted living costs often do not include:
— Phone and internet services
— Personal supplies, such as care and toiletries
— Some personal grooming, such as hairstyling or salon-like services, including nail care
Questions to Ask About the Cost of Assisted Living
The pricing you’ll see online is often a base rate, so it’s important to ask questions about what is included in the monthly fee and what is a separate expense.
“This is especially important when you’re shopping and comparing communities. You may be provided a marketing fee schedule that shows the rental rate and the care level rate, but there is also a detailed schedule of fees that shows any additional expenses that may end up being added to your loved one’s monthly bill,” explains Bergeron. “Make sure you’re asking for this detailed schedule of fees as well, so that you know going into it what exactly could be additional monthly expenses so that you’re not surprised.”
When evaluating an assisted living community and its cost, some questions to ask about pricing include:
— How much does pricing vary by or floor plan?
— Are there pricing tiers structured around the level of care?
— Are there annual pricing increases, and if so, what are the increases?
— What services and activities are included, and which are optional or additional?
— Are there upfront fees, such as deposits, community or move-in fees?
— What notice do I need to provide if I choose to move out?
— Can my loved ones stay indefinitely, or would they ever be asked to move to a community that offers a higher level of care?
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originally appeared on
Update 04/15/26: This story was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
