When you visit, pay attention to details like how friendly the staff and residents are. Also, look for a calendar of events, resident-led clubs, and excursions.

Location

After years of juggling kids, household chores, and career obligations, seniors often relish the idea of an active retirement where all these things are taken care of. With the right senior living community, they can spend more time with friends and family, explore new hobbies, and enjoy their favorite meals.

Some senior communities are apartment-style, where residents share a typical building or neighborhood, while others have free-standing homes. While the former may offer more privacy, they cost more because you’re paying for a shared space. These communities are typically hard to sell and don’t offer health care services like nursing and memory care.

Many communities are located in rural or small-town areas with lower land prices. You can often find a senior community that offers independent living and assisted living in the same place. This way, your loved one can transition to a lower level of care as needed.

Amenities

Most Raleigh, North Carolina senior living communities use different amenities to enhance the quality of life for their residents. Amenities range from basic apartment amenities to social spaces and health/wellness facilities.

Fitness is crucial to any healthy lifestyle, so most independent communities provide various wellness and exercise opportunities. This includes swimming pools, fitness centers, and group exercise classes. Many also offer walking trails and putting greens to keep residents active outdoors.

Staying active and engaged is essential to aging, significantly as social networks shrink. Look for community-wide activities, including bingo, painting and tai chi.

Many seniors prefer to give back to their local community by helping others. These opportunities can include kitchen areas to bake goodies for police and fire departments, space to sponsor donation events (food and supplies for animal shelters, clothing and shoes for charity resale shops), and more.

Resident Activities

Apartment resident events are vital to keeping residents happy and engaged. They can also be one of the first things prospective tenants consider when moving into an apartment.

For example, hosting a community photo scavenger hunt is a low-cost, fun-filled way to get everyone socialized and moving around the property. Similarly, inviting residents to participate in dance lessons can allow them to explore new interests while building community connections with their peers.

Educational events are another great way to help keep residents active and engaged. These can include a variety of topics, from computer courses to cooking classes. Some of these events can even be held in residents’ apartments, so they can make new friends and connect with their neighbors without leaving their homes.

Residents can also enjoy activities like coupon cutting, magazine collage, and pottery classes to build their creative side. Providing various options means that there will surely be an activity that fits every personality and interest.

Staff

When you work at a senior living community, people place their lives and quality of life in your hands. It’s a big responsibility but rewarding if you have the right skills and compassion. Staff can include nurses, caregivers, therapists trained in dementia and Alzheimer’s care, social workers, dining team members, housekeepers, administrative professionals, and transportation drivers.

Hospitality staff is also essential and should have training in serving seniors with different needs and interests—from greeting residents when they enter the dining room to more profound philosophies of service and treating residents like family. When touring communities, ask about the staff-to-resident ratio; ideally, you want to know that someone will be available for help throughout the day.

Ready to find the perfect senior living community for you or a loved one? A Senior Living Advisor can provide options and advice based on your unique situation.