Continuing Care Retirement Communities

[Sugarcubesea]

View attachment 5004 here are a bunch of older ladies in our community. Second from left will be 79. There were 16 of us playing at raptor bay, the course at the Hyatt coconut in Bonita springs. Only a couple have gone natural.

WOW that gal has some great genes. She does not look a day over 55 to me. Thanks for sharing the pic

 

[WinniWoman]

I work in an industry that once they feel you are in your 50’s they want you out the door and retired.

I need to work another 10 years as I need Medicare to kick in at 65. I will be retiring the day I turn 65 and have Medicare in hand. I look forward to not coloring my hair any longer as that will be a huge cost save.

You look great and I aspire to look that good when I go grey

Thanks. You know I thought about work as well. I actually started this job at age 50 12 years ago.

I, too, have several years to go until retirement and I need Medicare to kick in at age 65 as well. I was a little concerned about how I would be perceived as the only woman with gray hair- I am the oldest woman there, though there a few in their early 50's. One male boss is 50 and the CEO is in his late 40's. (A few men there have gray hair and no one gives it another thought).

But I said the heck with it! And it seems- at least on the surface- that it hasn't had an affect on how I am treated. Then again, I work mostly independently and am out in the field a lot. And I haven't sensed any issue with our outside clients and their staff. Again, if anything, I get compliments.

But- hey- maybe it works in my favor because no employer wants an age discrimination lawsuit! LOL!

 

[WinniWoman]

View attachment 5004 here are a bunch of older ladies in our community. Second from left will be 79. There were 16 of us playing at raptor bay, the course at the Hyatt coconut in Bonita springs. Only a couple have gone natural.

They are all beautiful! I also have an 82 year old friend that does not look a day over 70- and I mean a beautiful 70! No plastic surgery, nothing like that. Just good genes. Great skin- stayed out of direct sun. Drinks Manhattans. LOL!

BTW- she let her hair go gray when she was around 70. She dyed it blonde up until then- which was the color of her hair in her youth. She has blue eyes.

 

[vacationhopeful]

OK .... my luck.

My mother was TOTALLY GREY/SILVER by age 40. My sister 6 years younger than me, inherited that gene. She & her hairdresser started dying her grey (formerly brown, but now grey hair) BLOND. Seems grey is easier to cover via blond dye. Living 1500+ miles from the family it matter not to us, but her work and public image with outside vendors, it did. Since she retired, her "not dyed hair" has not deferred getting that 10+ year YOUNGER guy.

As for me and my hair, I seem to have inherited my father's mother's hair gene. I have a few strands of grey .. but does not interfer with everyone thinking I am 15+ years younger than my real age.... but since EVERYONE at 2 Home Depots knows my name ... I play "run, fetch & pay" for the jobsite materials for work ... I hold my own with the younger HD employee crowd for lugging plywood, 2x4s and 5 gallon pails of MUD & paint.... esp since 3/4 of the staff is as old or older than I ... and when you can find anyone lately.

 

[rapmarks]

When I was 49, the state came up with a plan to get teachers to retire early. I was on the list and labeled as one of the elderly teachers. Everyone my age and older retired, and I can remember one guy in his twenties being shocked that we still played golf at our age. I was the only teacher over fifty for a few years , and treated as elderly

 

[puppymommo]

I am also 61 and have never colored my hair. Every time I bring it up, my hairdresser tells me not to do it, although he could make more money coloring my hair. Now I am mostly grey with some mousy brown. I work mostly with people in their 70s and 80s. Most of the women do color my hair, so I imagine I look older than some of them. Oh well. I automatically get offered the senior discount at most places!

 

[PigsDad]

Just saw this article on my MSN news feed, and thought I would share it:

9 Things You Didn't Know About Gray Hair

Kurt

 

[clifffaith]

So I've been selling off collections that I no longer want on eBay since December 2011. And now that we are in the "about to be moving mode" I've increased what I'm trying to get rid of. Anything that is packable and light weight enough to ship has been getting listed on eBay. Just before Christmas I decided I could live with two Christmas trees instead of three, and so listed a bunch of ornaments. Many sold, but I have plenty still for sale. So today I sold a pair of ornaments to be shipped to Carlsbad. Address looked familiar, sure enough I sold ornaments to the CCRC we'll be moving to unless our plans change. Told Cliff, that will be me, sell everything off to get us moved, and then buy it back on eBay!

 

[bogey21]

Trust me on this one. Almost everyone I talk to at my CCRC says the biggest mistake they made when moving in was to bring too much stuff with them. My advice is to sell and/or give away as much as you can and move in lean.

George

 

[isisdave]

I just watched "Expedition Happiness" on Netflix. This German couple came to the US, bought an old school bus, refurbished it into a travel home, and spent six months driving from North Carolina across Canada, through Alaska, and down through Mexico.

When they decided to return home, they raffled off the bus. Maybe you could package up stuff and raffle it off either on eBay or even here!

 

[clifffaith]

I just watched "Expedition Happiness" on Netflix. This German couple came to the US, bought an old school bus, refurbished it into a travel home, and spent six months driving from North Carolina across Canada, through Alaska, and down through Mexico.

When they decided to return home, they raffled off the bus. Maybe you could package up stuff and raffle it off either on eBay or even here!

One thing is for sure, eBay has pretty much killed any enthusiasm I have for a garage sale. We had our last one several months after moving into this home, then I discovered eBay a few months after that. I had stuff left over from the garage sale that I'd packed up 7 years ago, and thought we'd better have a pre-garage sale before having the real garage sale when we will have furniture, etc. that we won't be moving to Carlsbad. So last summer after we'd put our deposit in to get on the wait list I started opening boxes to see what I had for my pre-garage sale. Hmm, that will sell on eBay, oh, that also will sell on eBay. Suddenly the light bulb went off, if it didn't sell locally 7 years ago it's not going to sell now so it was time for charity box or eBay.

 

[Luanne]

One thing is for sure, eBay has pretty much killed any enthusiasm I have for a garage sale. We had our last one several months after moving into this home, then I discovered eBay a few months after that. I had stuff left over from the garage sale that I'd packed up 7 years ago, and thought we'd better have a pre-garage sale before having the real garage sale when we will have furniture, etc. that we won't be moving to Carlsbad. So last summer after we'd put our deposit in to get on the wait list I started opening boxes to see what I had for my pre-garage sale. Hmm, that will sell on eBay, oh, that also will sell on eBay. Suddenly the light bulb went off, if it didn't sell locally 7 years ago it's not going to sell now so it was time for charity box or eBay.

We started clearing out at least a year before we were ready to move. We knew we'd be downsizing. I used a variety of methods to get rid of things. We had one garage sale (it didn't make a lot and to me wasn't worth the effort). I used craigslist and did pretty well there. We donated a bunch of stuff, and things that weren't quite nice enough to donate or sell, but that we didn't want to end up in the landfill, went to freecycle. This was a great way to get rid of stuff. By the time we moved we had whittled our belongings down. We've gotten rid of very little else since we moved and I haven't really missed anything we did get rid of.

 

[easyrider]

Just saw this article on my MSN news feed, and thought I would share it:

9 Things You Didn't Know About Gray Hair

Kurt

Another thing about grey hair, that wasn't mentioned in the article, is that millennial's, for some reason, have found it to be fashionable, to have grey hair. One of the pharmacists at my pharmacy died her hair grey. I think she is about 30. It doesn't look bad or make her look any older. Later, I was at a wedding and some of the girls had grey hair. I don't get it. It looked good. Funny to think that these girls will likely be trying hard to stay other than gray 30 years from now.

Bill

 

[clifffaith]

My dyed hair is completely grown out and I love my new gray hair! Still a fair amount of brown, and darker in back than front, and I'm hoping I'll eventually have hair like my mom's which is white in front, graduating to dark silver in the back. But I looked around the table at our last CCRC visit, and only one other woman was gray, all the other old biddies are still dyeing their hair!

Saw an ad in the paper last month for The Village at Northridge, and even though no way we'd move to Northridge we decided to take them up on their tour and lunch. In signing up for that we discovered they have a facility in Santa Barbara, so we are set up for a tour on Nov. 2nd on our way home from Worldmark Pismo Beach. Northridge has a $4,000 service initiation fee, no buy in. The monthly fee is about $9K for two of us, $1K less when the second body no longer occupies the unit. But I looked around and everyone seemed OLD, and I did not like the single building concept now that I've seen CCRCs with a campus or a beach. The Santa Barbara paperwork looks like that location works differently -- with a $250K-$300K buy in and then $7200/month for two.

On Oct. 21st we go for a week at a Diamond Resorts affiliate which is a block or two from the Carlsbad CCRC. Have the marketing lady on notice that we'll see her with our list of questions, and the lady who made an eBay purchase from me who turned out to live in the facility is on tap for a lunch on us so we can pick her brain.

 

[VacationForever]

My dyed hair is completely grown out and I love my new gray hair! Still a fair amount of brown, and darker in back than front, and I'm hoping I'll eventually have hair like my mom's which is white in front, graduating to dark silver in the back. But I looked around the table at our last CCRC visit, and only one other woman was gray, all the other old biddies are still dyeing their hair!

Saw an ad in the paper last month for The Village at Northridge, and even though no way we'd move to Northridge we decided to take them up on their tour and lunch. In signing up for that we discovered they have a facility in Santa Barbara, so we are set up for a tour on Nov. 2nd on our way home from Worldmark Pismo Beach. Northridge has a $4,000 service initiation fee, no buy in. The monthly fee is about $9K for two of us, $1K less when the second body no longer occupies the unit. But I looked around and everyone seemed OLD, and I did not like the single building concept now that I've seen CCRCs with a campus or a beach. The Santa Barbara paperwork looks like that location works differently -- with a $250K-$300K buy in and then $7200/month for two.

On Oct. 21st we go for a week at a Diamond Resorts affiliate which is a block or two from the Carlsbad CCRC. Have the marketing lady on notice that we'll see her with our list of questions, and the lady who made an eBay purchase from me who turned out to live in the facility is on tap for a lunch on us so we can pick her brain.

Those are pretty steep monthly charges. What do they include besides room/unit - how large?, 3 meals and housekeeping - weekly presumably, and transportation to outings and social activities?

 

[rapmarks]

Those are pretty steep monthly charges. What do they include besides room/unit - how large?, 3 meals and housekeeping - weekly presumably, and transportation to outings and social activities?

I gasped when I saw that figure.

 

[clifffaith]

Those are pretty steep monthly charges. What do they include besides room/unit - how large?, 3 meals and housekeeping - weekly presumably, and transportation to outings and social activities?

They include peace of mind for Cliff that I am not dying alone. No kids, no family assuming my sister does the disappearing act I suspect she will after Mom dies.

 

[clifffaith]

I gasped when I saw that figure.

Remember this is coastal Southern California. A buy-in of $300-$400K at a CCRC would need to be doubled to buy a house. I have no heirs besides a pet rescue and my Catholic girls' high school so I might as well spend the money myself (and many CCRCs care for you if you run out of money as long as you aren't going to the track with it).

 

[VacationForever]

Remember this is coastal Southern California. A buy-in of $300-$400K at a CCRC would need to be doubled to buy a house. I have no heirs besides a pet rescue and my Catholic girls' high school so I might as well spend the money myself (and many CCRCs care for you if you run out of money as long as you aren't going to the track with it).

So have you figured out the difference in costs and services with the CCRCs that require buy-in and ones without? I am very familiar with the non-buy-in type of CCRCs in Northern California and the monthly fees are nowhere near what you have been looking at. Even for very high-end ones, they were about $5K per month for one person, and slightly more for 2, with no buy-in costs as of 2 years ago.

 

[bogey21]

Those are pretty steep monthly charges. What do they include besides room/unit - how large?, 3 meals and housekeeping - weekly presumably, and transportation to outings and social activities?

Three things in addition to the above that come along with my buying into a CCRC that many don't consider. One is a guarantee of Assisted Living at a preferential rate if/when I need it. Second is that a portion (in my case about 30%) of my monthly payments are deductible on my FIT as "Prepaid Medical Expenses". And third if I run out of money (without doing it on purpose) my contract provides that my CCRC will cover all or part of my monthly expenses for the rest of my life...

George

 

[Patri]

And third if I run out of money (without doing it on purpose) my contract provides that my CCRC will cover all or part of my monthly expenses for the rest of my life...
George

What if it is "part"? Are the rules clearly defined?

 

[bogey21]

What if it is "part"? Are the rules clearly defined?

Not clearly defined. What they do is sit down with Residents having financial difficulties and see how much they can pay. Note that my CCRC has an incentive to work with Residents needing help because the Property Taxes of the CCRC are substantially reduced provided 3% of revenue is used for "Charity". Subsidizing Residents who can't pay falls withing the "Charity" definition...

George

 

[b2bailey]

Several years ago, my stepmother and her husband sold his home in Marin County and moved to CCRC in San Jose. They had a small 1 BR plus 2 meals per day for approx $7,000/month. Fast forward, 4 years. He passed away. Her memory began to fail. She was moved to their onsite (locked) memory care unit. Now shares a room, tiny space not much bigger than her single bed. Cost runs $8,000/mo depending on additional personal services required. Don't know what happens if she outlives her available funds.
Note to self: Don't die in Silicon Valley, unless it is quick.

 

[bogey21]

$7,000 per month for a 1 bedroom is outrageous. When I bought into Trinity Terrace 18 years ago the cost for my 1 bedroom was about $1,550 per month. With annual increases it is now about $2,600 per month. Compare this $2,600 to the $1,200 - $1,400 plus utilities and food I would be paying if I lived in a regular Apartment complex and then take into account the tax deduction and certainty of lifetime care...

If I ever have to go into Assisted Living my cost will increase to something like $5,000 per month but I will have my own large unit with a nice community dining room if I am mobile enough not to require meals in my room. Maybe most of the difference in cost can be the difference between living in Silicon Valley and Fort Worth, Texas...

George

 

[PigsDad]

Maybe most of the difference in cost can be the difference between living in Silicon Valley and Fort Worth, Texas...

I think they are just pricing to what the local market can bear. Think about it -- those California retirees will most likely be selling off their homes when they move into a CCRC or assisted living, and with the real estate prices as they are, I'm guessing most (or at least a good percentage) will be selling $1 million+ homes. So $7K/month is probably reasonable for them. The equivalent home in Texas would probably be $250K.

Kurt