Plentiful Senior Housing Options Create Many Lifestyle Choices for Seniors!

Minnesota's "older" consumers today are on average more savvy, a little older, and have many more housing options than previous generations of seniors. They demand quality, independence and choice, which has led to the creation of over 1,650 senior housing communities of every type around the state, according to the Minnesota Health & Housing Alliance. Those housing categories include:  market rate and federally-subsidized apartments, some with assisted living services; adult foster care; board and lodging; and non-certified boarding care homes.

Clearly, senior housing is more than a place to live--it is a lifestyle. Like other lifestyles, it is a choice that older people can make based on their specific needs and desires. Why so many options? Allong with the tremendous growth in the number of seniors, who are generally living longer and staying healthier, is the strong preference for staying independent in their own communities as long as possible. And, as more seniors live longer, many will eventually need settings that can offer supportive or health services.

Services Are One Key
Services that help tenants stay independent have become a key part of many senior housing communities. Supportive services are commonly available in senior buildings and can include meals, emergency call and security systems, scheduled transportation, housekeeping, service coordination, help with laundry or personal funds, and more. In addition to these services, assisted living services also are available in many settings. Assisted living includes supportive services as well as health-related services, which are licensed as "home care" services by the Minnesota Department of Health. Home care can include professional nursing services, help with dressing, grooming and bathing, medication assistance or administration and central storage of medications. Such services, particularly home care services, are a key reason so many more seniors can remain independent in senior housing settings. In addition, specialty senior housing also has emerged, such as small group settings for those with memory loss

Senior Housing Growth in the 1990s
According to a new report by Maxfield Research, during the last decade, the greatest growth in market rate senior housing in the seven-county Twin Cities area was in 1995 (1,240 new units) and 1998 (1,223 new units). Of new units built in 1998, 45 percent were in assisted living, 36 percent in independent senior communities, and 19 percent in "congregate" projects with some supportive services, such as meals. According to the report, 1998 saw the largest increase ever of assisted living units in the Twin Cities. The growth of senior housing, particularly assisted living, continues steadily in other parts of the state as well.

Why Senior Housing?
What triggers a move to senior housing? The need for some supportive or health care services is a big reason. Some seniors move simply to be closer to family, health care or shopping. As they grow older, others want to avoid burdensome home maintenance such as mowing, shoveling snow and cleaning gutters. Others feel isolated and lonely, particularly after the death of a spouse, and move to senior housing for the companionship and sense of community.

Although a move into senior housing can be a tough choice to make, these settings offer tenants tremendous benefits. One national study showed that an older person living in a senior housing community had an average life expectancy of four-and-one-half years longer than a comparable person living in a private home? There were three key reasons cited for the life expectancy increase among senior housing dwellers: 1) availability of needed health and supportive services; 2) well-balanced, nutritious meals provided on-site; and 3) opportunities for activities and frequent interaction with other seniors and staff.

Where to Start
Mary Youle, MHHA director of housing services, encourages seniors to explore their housing options long before they plan to move. "Unfortunately, too many people still wait until a crisis forces them to make a quick decision, "she says. She also counsels people to be good shoppers. "Make a list of the things that are important to you, and then visit those communities in which you are interested. Take a tour, have a meal in the dining room and, most importantly, talk informally with those who live there."

 Before consumers begin their search, they should know about a recent Minnesota law covering senior buildings providing residential and supportive or health-related services, called "housing-with-services" settings. The law requires a clear, written contract or lease with each resident that addresses important consumer information, such as the monthly cost of basic services, services available for an additional fee, and how to make changes to the contract. This law was developed by MHHA and establishes the simple mechanism of a contract to assure consumers are given information they need to make good choices in selecting their senior community. While the available senior housing options are diverse, this protection provides a consistent framework to assure quality in these settings, while keeping the consumer as the central decision-maker.

Source: Minnesota Health & Housing Alliance

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