Senior living can be confusing and independent living is no exception. It’s one of the most common types of senior living. Yet it’s often misunderstood.
What is independent living?
Independent living includes a wide range of options. This is one of the reasons it can be hard to recognize. To understand things like who should consider it, what it includes, and what it costs, we need to start with a basic understanding of what it is and isn’t.
By Definition
Independent living communities are geared toward healthy, active – and social – seniors who don’t want to worry about yardwork, house repairs and the expenses associated with owning a house.
Type of Care
Unlike other types of senior living, independent living doesn’t include care. It’s part of what sets it apart and makes it “independent”. With other types of senior living, like assisted living and memory care, you receive assistance with some of your activities of daily living. This could be things like taking a shower, getting dressed, or remembering to take your medications. Assistance with your activities of daily living isn’t included in independent living.
Who should consider independent living?
If you’re able to continue living independently, but want to live in a community setting, independent living is an ideal choice. But, if you need assistance with your activities of daily living, it’s likely not the best fit.
There are a variety of reasons you may to decide to move to a community instead of continuing to live independently at home. Some of the most common are:
- Household maintenance/upkeep becomes too much
- Want to be more social and spend more time surrounded by people
- Peace of mind, for yourself or loved ones
An independent living community can offer peace of mind for you and your loved ones in many ways. When you move to a senior living community that offers additional types of care, there’s less worry about what happens if you eventually need assistance with your daily activities. If or when that day comes, that community can offer you the support you need. If you move to senior living with your spouse, you don’t have to worry about one of you being alone if something happens to the other. The social connections and community atmosphere will be there to offer support.
What does independent living offer?
While independent living doesn’t include care, or assistance with your activities of daily living, it does offer a lot. To understand what it offers, we need to look at it’s accommodations, features, and amenities. These are the things that can make a community lucrative and help you narrow down your choices from one to the next.
Accommodations
You can think of independent living in two categories. These are the types of accommodations. First is villas. They’re often single-family ranch homes, condos, and duplexes. Next is apartments, much like any apartment you’d find outside of senior living with some added perks.
Features
The features of independent living in a senior living community are much like the features of other homes and apartments. Think about what you look for in any home. Things like square footage, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and floor plans.
Independent living has the same features. You may even be surprised by what some senior living communities offer.
At The Ohio Masonic Communities, independent living includes villas and apartments, and offers a wide range of features. Options range from 430 to 2,125 square feet, with lofts all the way to 3 bedroom/2 bathroom. So, you can choose the one that’s right for you. The features can vary depending on whether it’s a villa or an apartment and the floor plan. Other possible features include basements, sunrooms, garages, dens, fireplaces, walk in closets, balconies and patios, walk in shower, appliances, and more. We even include all the utilities, including internet.
Amenities
Amenities set a senior living community apart from any other apartment or home. They’re the extra things you get when you live in a particular community. It’s everything beyond the walls of your apartment or home.
Often, amenities are a motivation to move to a senior living community. They’re a hallmark of what independent living is. At The Ohio Masonic Communities, our favorite amenities are
- Maintenance-free and worry-free living – our residents enjoy not worrying about mowing the lawn, shoveling the snow, or handling maintenance around the house. Sometimes, it even includes housekeeping.
- Fitness centers – if you have a fitness goal, the fitness centers on our campuses are there to help meet it. We also offer group exercise classes, and some campuses even have a dedicated personal trainer available for residents.
- Restaurant-style dining – you can change things up and enjoy a meal in our dining rooms and cafes. Enjoy our chef-inspired menus with friends, family, and loved ones, or get your order to go and enjoy it at home.
What does independent living cost?
Cost can be one of the biggest factors in moving to independent living. But it may not be in the way you think. If you add up all of your current expenses, and compare them to the price of senior living, you may find that you save money. Especially when you consider things you currently pay for that are included in senior living, like utilities and landscaping.
Independent living prices at The Ohio Masonic Communities range from $1,600 to $5,510. Prices vary depending on the community, whether you choose an apartment or a villa, the floor plan, how recently the space was updated, and what monthly fees include.
How do I pay for independent living?
When it comes to paying for senior living, each level of care is a little bit different. This is partially due to the care being provided or the assistance with activities of daily living. Sometimes, the cost of senior living can be covered by medical insurance, long-term care insurance, or a waiver program. These typically do not cover independent living, where you generally self-pay using cash and other assets.
What if independent living isn’t the right choice?
Independent living is a great choice if you’re able to live completely independently but want added benefits senior living can provide. However, it isn’t always the best choice. Depending on your circumstances, it may be better to consider a different type of senior living care.
Assisted Living
Assisted living can be the perfect balance of independence and support. While independent living offers no care, assisted living provides some assistance with your activities of daily living. However, it offers less care than skilled nursing or a traditional nursing home. In assisted living, you can maintain as much of your independence for as long as possible, while getting help when you need it.
Memory care
Sometimes, residents with Alzheimer’s or dementia need more than assisted living. They might need extra support and a more secure environment. This is when memory care comes in. Memory care is almost always a type of assisted living. In rare cases, memory care may actually be a form of skilled nursing. With assisted living memory care, almost everything about assisted living still applies. The biggest differences might be the number of residents or staff, the types of activities or programming, and the physical environment. Memory care is usually its own section of a building, or its own building altogether, with secured doors to enter and exit. This creates a more secure environment for residents with Alzheimer’s or dementia who may wander or search for exits.
Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC)
A Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC), sometimes called a Life Plan Community (LPC), is a type of senior living community that includes independent living, assisted living, memory care, skilled nursing care, and short-term rehabilitation. One of the biggest advantages of a CCRC is that you can move from one type of care to another without needing to move to a different community. So, you can move into a villa when you want and then have assisted living or memory care available if you ever need it. An added bonus is that at most communities, if there is a waitlist, current residents get to skip the line and go to the top of the list. This is a great way to maximize enjoying retirement and planning ahead for if your needs change.
Dive Deeper
Want to learn more about the benefits of independent living? Listen to this episode of Senior Living Today.
The Ohio Masonic Communities offers independent living at three senior living communities across the state of Ohio – Browning Masonic Community in Waterville, Ohio, Springfield Masonic Community in Springfield, Ohio, and Western Reserve Masonic Community in Medina, Ohio. If you are interested in learning more about independent living, give us a call at 1 (877) 881-1623 or contact us here.