The senior hall up where I used to live has long had outings where they take twenty-five people on a bus to various continuum care complexes for tours and lunch and, of course, the sales pitch. I’d been on quite a few of them when I was trying to decide if I wanted to buy a condo, a cottage on lake or a smaller house. All I knew for sure was it was chancy for me to stay in such a big, lonely house. It was time to downsize while I could still do it on my own and not wait until a medical issue forced me out and others would have to make the critical decision for me as to where I'd live out the rest of my life. I didn’t know much about the CCC concept of living but after touring most of them in town and following their newsletters online I warmed up to the idea. I just didn’t think I could afford to buy into one.
The guy who takes these buses around has a business like the national chain “A Place for Mom”. These kinds of placement businesses are not unusual but we usually don’t hear about them until you’re in a situation where you have to find a place in a hurry after someone has a medical issue that makes it impossible to go back to their home and a hospital social worker puts you in contact with one. They get a flat fee of several thousand dollars per placement they arrange, no matter where you end up and it’s paid by the CCC, the nursing home or other facility where you end up in. The fee is regulated by law so the placement people have nothing personal to gain by directing someone to one place over another; they can base their recommendations on the best fit for your income and situation.
I’ll call this guy DeWayne because that’s his name and I had a personal appointment with him before finding the CCC I’m in now and he went over my finances, picked five places that he knew I could afford and would have personally driven me around to see each of them had I been ready to do a serious search. Two came off the list right away when I told him I didn’t want a “churchy place” and a third one was located too inconvenient for my family should I start needing them to oversee me more. DeWaye spent his entire career in this field and knows the social structure and everything else worth knowing about the senior living places in town. I found this CCC on my own through a TV ad so he didn’t get a finder's fee but it was because of him that I was able to recognize a good deal when I saw it. Being one of the first 25 people to sign up it saved me thousands of dollars. The moral of this tale is that if you use a service like this get someone whose been in the business more than a minute and a half. There's a lot to consider besides price and location.
I had occasion to see DeWayne again this month when I got wind that my old senior hall was bringing a bus load of people down to tour this campus and have lunch and two of my old Gathering Girls pals were going to be on the tour. So I talked to the head of the marketing department and asked if there would be time for me to show my friends my place while they were on the campus and to make a long story short, my apartment became one of the units the entire bus load of people toured and I got to have lunch with my friends.
It was fun! I knew seven or eight people who came on the tour and I was excited to show my apartment because so few people had actually seen it since I moved in. They broke the group up into smaller groups and I got to hear them remark about my decorating choices. Mine was one of three on the tour and the other two were models, setup with sleek, modern furniture so mine was really different. The marketing director wants to talk later about featuring my place in one of their advertisements because “it’s fantastic!” in her words.
The only down side to having my place on the tour was the cleaning guy was off his schedule so I ended up having to clean the place myself beforehand. And on the up side the CEO finally got to put a face to the three emails I’ve sent him because I was wearing my name badge and the two marketing gals during their sales pitch kept saying my name, using me as an example and asking me questions. I’d only had one, one-on-one conversation with the guy since I started this whole process with the CCC and that was two and a half years ago, while a few others here are constantly flagging the CEO down to “take their problems to the top.”
The marketing department afterward also asked me if I’d be willing to tag along on future tour groups and have lunch with them. I don’t know how I feel about that but at least it’s an indication that I didn’t make a complete fool out of myself. I was bubbling over with excitement, seeing my old friends. Not sure if I could recreate that enthusiasm for a random group or if I'd even want to try. ©
That was a win-win for everyone!
ReplyDeleteIt was! I was especially happy to see my old Gathering Gals friends. They'd watched me through the planning and downsizing stages and wanted to see the end results as much as I wanted them too.
DeleteI am not surprised that your place got rave reviews and management wants to feature it in an ad. You are an artist, and you are using your artistic eye to create a warm, inviting space to call your own…of that I have no doubt. Something that would immediately resonate with all who enter. Something all of these minimalist, sleek, modern places will never achieve. I’m also not surprised that you were invited to tag along on future tours as no doubt your IRL personality matches your decorating prowess! Well done, Jean!
ReplyDeleteDeb
Last night the Red Rider came over to see my paintings and then we went over to her place. We have the same floor plan but you'd never know it out places are so different. I absolutely loved her deep navy walls in the den and her art work in their. She has some museum quality oils. Got to see a couple of portraits of her and her horse.
DeleteThat's fantastic, I can see why they would rave about your place and want prospective residents to tour it. So much more Essence to view a real person's Home than a Model Home. Yes, the Model Homes are always decorated stylishly, but I've rarely walked into one that felt like a REAL Home and so I often know that I'd not recreate that kind of Atmosphere. If you Tour a Real Home and meet an enthusiastic Owner who Loves where they live, it is indeed a Sales Pitch that cannot be beat. I know if my Community here were 'new' and they were still attracting new Buyers, I'd rave over it and be an Ambassador. I think you will make a splendid Ambassador for your CCC. You wisely chose it and I personally felt you made an excellent choice in a location you can Happily spend Forever After. I know I could never afford a CCC and strangely they don't even have them around Metro Phoenix, but if I could and I were Single and at the place I should consider one, it would be an attractive option, so I like hearing about one via your Blog. You weigh the pros and the cons objectively and truthfully, which is important for anyone who might need to weigh that option for themselves.
ReplyDeleteI'm not the first resident to show their apartment to a group touring. One lady had a group from her church set up for the full treatment of free lunch and models. I've been through the models and they are sterile and no real personality.
DeleteI'm surprised you don't have CCC in Phoenix. Here, in my town 4-5 new ones have been built in the last four years. Getting ready for the Baby Boomers, I'm guessing since they have always driven the market place.
I stand corrected Jean, I've found what they consider CCC's here but they are nothing like yours... they look more like very typical Apartment Complexes that have zero Wow Factor for what they charge and the common areas remind me of a regular Nursing Home. I certainly wouldn't pay the $3,000-$8,000 a Month they're charging even IF I had that kind of wealth to afford that along with the $160,000-$400,000 they have the Resident pay up front for some very Basic Housing that looks nothing like the lovely place you have and was built to your specs... plus has the Natural Beauty outside and a lovely Dining Option inside. The only place around these parts worth considering is the one I put my Mom in for her rehabilitation and it's for the ultra Wealthy Client... Medicare paid for 21 Days there for her, I only got her in because I knew people who worked there and it was the best place I couldn't afford. *LOL*
DeleteI only pay $1,800 a month with a buy-in of $210,000 (? it's been awhile). But I know of other places for profit that pay $3,000+ a month for far less square footage. The woods and the lake really do make this place special although I do know of two others in town with woods attached.
DeleteYours was reasonable indeed for what you're getting. And especially since Long Term Care, Years ago for my Mom, was costing $11,000 per Month... the only way she could get in was to be made a Ward of the State of California. I couldn't get her in anywhere here in Arizona Long Term since her Military Provided Insurance and Medicare would not cover the costs, which in our State was around $9,000 per Month... Medicare will only pay for a 21 day period and has Lifetime Caps.
DeleteWe really need to do better in this country to care for the elderly but that's not going to happen any time soon. We're all on our own.
DeleteThere's no doubt that continuum care facilities are a huge necessity and big business in our country. It's good to know that the placement businesses work at a flat fee--hopefully that means that greed is controlled (if that's possible). It had to be fun for your friends to tour your new home. Such a good picture of your place. It sounds like the marketing dept values your participation, and if I were shopping for a facility, I'd appreciate talking with a resident. Do you think any of your old friends might choose your ccc?
ReplyDeleteOne of my friends moved in with her daughter, bought a house together, so no on her. The other one can well afford to move to a place like this and is open to the idea but she' is overwhelmed with the whole downsizing task and she'd need a lot of help from family to do it. But I'm not sure her kids would support her spending their inheritance that way. One lady who lives here said her son hasn't forgiven her for moving here because it's $225,000 he won't get when she dies. Put a real strain on their relationship.
DeleteI wish any of my old Gathering Girls pals would move here. I'll never have the same easy friendships with others here that I had with them. But I'd be shocked if any of them did.
I know that $225,000 is a lot of money, but when you think of the benefits, it seems like a fair price to pay. It really is incredibly sad when money interferes with relationships--that poor woman whose son begrudged her living there.
DeleteWhen she was telling me about her son I felt sorry for her. All he seemed to care about is her preserving cash so he'd have an easy inheritance. Damaged their relationship big time. Another daughter to another resident also didn't want her moving in because of the money but she at least helped her physically with the move, which the son didn't with the first woman.
DeleteJeez! If she has some years ahead of her, she would likely use that money on living or medical expenses anyway. I'm sure lots of kids might feel some disappointment but would still want their parent to do what they felt was best for themselves.
DeleteMy daughter-in-law's father died last week at the age of 84 or 85. He'd been a well respected university professor before he retired but had been suffering from Alzheimer's and other medical issues and had been bedridden for at least the last year. His wife had been paying for round the clock care for him to the tune of $30,000 a month. (The rate was $35 an hour with overnight care charging time and a half.) My son and DIL have been managing her folk's money and were shocked to find that her parents had numerous bank accounts that they'd been squirelling money away in over the years. (Her parents were from Scotland so maybe the frugality was built in.) At any rate, my son and DIL were grateful the money was there for his care and didn't begrudge her mom spending it that way because it was their hard-earned money, but still it was eye-opening how much in home care can cost.
DeleteLS Nelson, you are right. I would b relieved to know that she no longer has to depend on him for any kind of medical decisions. If faced with needed to move her to a nursing home he'd pick the cheapest. For every kid disappointed in their parent buying into a CCC I'm begging their are 6-7 would are relieved they don't have make those kinds of decisions in the future and that they helped downsize while they both could still enough the process.
DeleteTEXAS - Staying at home with help is not cheap nor is it always safe. My sister-in-law had to use it for years for her bedridden daughter and I could tell you horror stories of what some of the rotating caregivers did. I'm glad your family are at peace with the final care the father got and was able to in effect "prepay" for himself.
DeleteIn Home Care not being affordable to most, and Long Term Care not being affordable to most, a CCC is at least affordable to some and a Wise option if you are Well when you move in, so that the Entrance Fee is doable. If you are already deteriorating or have a Spouse requiring Caregiving, it isn't even an option tho' except to the most Affluent. So, it's important for Seniors to know they need to make this important decision while they are still Well and alas, probably not part of a Couple, unless they really squirrelled away a small Fortune.
DeleteYou are so right! It's important to move to a CCC when you're still young enough and healthy enough because that's when it is affordable and when you get the best bang for your buck...long term. We just went to a dialogue meeting with the CEO and he said the trend in health care now is to downsize/do away with a lot of nursing homes and instead bring all their services to your home, which they plan to do here for as long as we can possibly be supported in our own apartments. But for those not living in a CCC in home services are not all they are cracked up to be either. Sounds nice on paper but I know from watching my sister-in-law get it for many years that its not only isolating but the help and quality care is inconsistent and she'd been victimized several times by healthcare workers.
DeleteWow! Quite a discussion on this comment. I sure wouldn't want that son making any healthcare decisions for me, so she made a wise move despite his hostility. Sad. And I can totally agree that finding home healthcare people is a real challenge - much more challenging in Covid times. My mom had a real struggle for the last two years of my stepdad's life.
DeleteThat's really exciting! I've always loved the photos that you shared earlier and it's obvious that they were impressed, too! Big bonus about getting to know the CEO -- that's a huge plus. Bummer about the cleaning but I have a feeling it wasn't too messy!
ReplyDeleteCleaning this place is pretty quick and easy...just the surface kind, not the deep cleaning which I haven't lived here long enough to do yet.
DeleteI would not want to be a CEO to a place like this. He's good at his job though. He gets grilled at our monthly 'dialogue meetings' and handles himself and old people really well.
How neat that you got to meet again with your Gathering Girls. Could they just visit for a luncheon in the future? I'll bet it is interesting to see the totally different decorating styles of the identical units. Glad you have a new job and maybe they can throw in more privileges than a free lunch.
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping come nice weather we can meet in the middle of where all live so that none of us are driving as far as we'd have to go. One of my old Gathering Girls is quite ill and sadly we'll probably never see her again.
DeleteIf one of my friends/family did move in we'd both get $1,000 of our monthly service fee.
You've adjusted to your new condo so well that I'm not surprised everyone liked your style and your choice to live where you do. Fascinating idea to be a tagalong in the future. Could be fun?
ReplyDeleteIt was fun with this group because they came from my old stomping grounds but I'm not sure how I'd feel about a random group. The management says they'd like to have 4-5 residents they could call on to be tagalongs....not all at the same time but depending on how's available. It felt good to be asked. It will always come with free lunch but we don't have to show our units.
DeleteHey, you should get a commission if any of the people you tour sign on for a place! Nice of you to help out and great to see your friends!
ReplyDeleteA resident who gets someone to sign up actually get $1,000 off a monthly service fee as does the person you signed up. But a bus tour group doesn't count. I had a cousin and her husband tour and if they had signed the money would have been ours. They didn't think they could downsize enough to fit the 1,500 sq. feet units.
DeleteOh, what a wonderful experience for you. And I'm glad the tour got to see a place with mementos tastefully incorporated into a home. It gives potential residents the chance to see that they can bring some treasures into a smaller space without feeling cluttered or dated. I'm so glad you got to spend time with your buddies, too.
ReplyDeleteMe too, I was so excited to eat lunch with my old friends. We have a history.
DeleteI got to see another resident's place last night, same floor plan as mine and boy to they look different. Loved lots of her art work and the navy walls in her den. But too many of the people here have huge sectionals in their living space that bottle necks the places up. I don't have a lot of family to visit me so it was a trade off for me to keep my wicker instead of buying something more comfortable for guests.
Fascinating post. I know nothing about this but will probably find out some day. How wonderful that your apartment was used for the tour and that you got to spend time with your friends! A win-win for everyone.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know anything about these kinds of places either until I decided my house was too big and lonely after my husband died and I did a lot of research. So far it's working out get.
DeleteI tried to get to your blog but am having trouble. I'll try again when I have more time. Thanks for stopping by.
Now that sounds like a super day! Ooohs and aaaaahs over your home and some friendly faces and a free lunch! I hope I can afford a CCC when I turn 80+. Actually, I'd love to have my own place now!!! These tween boys and sharing a bathroom is getting tougher and tougher ...
ReplyDeleteThese places are a better bargain is you buy in younger than 80+ and they tart at 65. At a meeting yesterday the CEO said the current trend in places like this is do build least assisted living apartments and more independent places so that when you needed assistance they bring the staff to you so you don't have to move to another location on the same campus. Sounds good to me.
DeleteAn interesting post for someone like me who knows bugga all about such stuff
ReplyDeleteFew people do know anything until you need or want to move. as we age.
DeleteI love that you were able to spend time with some ole Gathering Girls! Hey you said that you needed to talk more, there ya go. (wink,wink)
ReplyDeleteThey know and like me. Nothing I say will shock them. But here I'm bidding my time to reveal myself little at a time because there they are going to be my neighbors until death do us part.
DeleteDo it another time or two, and then, with your highly successful track record established -- e.g., everyone loving you, enjoying your presentations, etc -- tell 'em if they want you to continue doing PR for them, it will cost: free desserts every day, free cleaning, etc. You could work this!
ReplyDeleteAlready get free cleaning but the free desserts is a great idea. LOL
DeleteOne thing's for sure: you are an excellent saleslady, worth your weight in extra treats! maybe a small fee for each performance you do?
ReplyDeleteThanks but it's not a performance. I'm libel to say just about anything...the good and the bad, when asked questions.
DeleteSounds like a really lovely outing and your space is so nice. And you got see your friends.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea there was a service around town to show these places on a tour. Smart! And I love all the pics you show and the stories of your CCC. I would definitely consider it in time - especially since I once lived almost across the street and loved that area. :-)
The tour bus is is join effort by the senior hall in my old neighborhood along with DeWayne. All those placement places, I'm pretty sure, operate the same way starting with a personal appointment to go over your assets and income to see what price range of places you can afford. If I remember correctly there are three-four price ranges and I was was not in the bottom nor in the top. Then they will show you only what you can afford so you for you to decide. Once you sign up, they get their fee from the place. Quite a few people here once lived in the neighborhood but just as many are from out of state or out of town.
DeleteThat was interesting seeing old friends and sharing your apartment. I can understand your thoughts about enjoying it as much if you didn't know the folks. I think it would be fun for the touring group to see how personalized these apartments can be.
ReplyDeleteI have since shown my apartment to a single person looking at an unfinished one right above me. The sales rep said she made a down payment right afterward. She was having trouble visualizing the space with furniture. I think all the units in my building are sold now so I probably won't be asked to show mine again.
DeleteWhat a treat to get to connect your new life with your old one. I think most of us need that continuity when we make a big change. And, whether you decide to be a regular tour stop/lunch ambassador or not, it's great that the management now realizes what an asset you are.
ReplyDeleteI don't know about the asset part but I've already allowed another party to tour my apartment and the couple ended up buying a unit.
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