Many pinched between falling home prices and increasing costs of care.
By Grant Milne

Older Americans looking to cover inflationary long-term care costs with home equity face increasing uncertainty as the two take divergent paths. According to the latest Case-Shiller index, considered the nation’s most reliable measure of home values, existing home prices in July were down nearly 20 percent from their peak in…

By Grant Milne

The following is an Interview with Ann-Marie Wordley, a PhD candidate at the University of Adelaide. Her research deals with the effects that animal assisted therapy have on dementia patients in a senior housing atmosphere. SNAPforSeniors: Could you provide a bit of background on who you are and what you…

By Grant Milne

It started, as it usually does, with subtle changes: a telephone in the cupboard, a warm jacket on a hot day, and increasingly frequent memory lapses. John was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease slightly more than three years earlier, but his decline came quickly. For his wife Margaret, the diagnosis was…

By Sandy Mau

Helping a parent move to senior housing can seem more intimidating than orchestrating a rocket launch. The death of a spouse, declining health or safety concerns can trigger the need to move. The first phase comes with the realization that what has been home is no longer suitable.

By Grant Milne

As the movement towards aging in place continues to pick up steam, alternatives to senior housing facilities offering a single level of care increase in popularity. “Continuing Care Retirement Community” is a rather nebulous term used to describe senior housing communities that provide a wide range of care levels on the same campus.

By Allison Evans

By 2050, one in five people in the United States will be age 65 and older, and 12 million of them will need long-term care. But the old paradigm for institutionalized care in the nursing home setting doesn’t fit the preferences and expectations of the baby boomers and Gen-Xers entering their golden years.

By Allison Evans

Finding the best nursing home care available in your area can be difficult at best. To ease the challenge, the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS) recently launched an innovative five- star ranking system of America’s nursing homes on its Nursing Home Compare Website. The primary purpose of this tool is to provide those who place patients into nursing homes detailed information about the performance of every Medicaid and Medicare certified nursing home in the country.

Long-distance caregivers should plan time for listening to problems and use resources to handle some of them.
By Sandy Mau

John is 82 and lives in Manhattan. Since the death of his brother, he regularly checks on his 87-year-old sister-in-law who lives about 90 minutes away. She has dementia and needs help with daily needs. An aide lives with her, but John is concerned the help is getting burned out. The last time John visited he noticed his sister-in-law’s condition was worsening, and he wonders what he can do to help.

Having a conversation about long-term care with an aging loved one can be difficult. Initiating a conversation can be awkward or uncomfortable for family members or caregivers. Although it is impossible to know what the future will bring, SNAPforSeniors, a national database for senior housing, offers the following hints and checklist that may help to begin a conversation about housing options with your loved one.

Family caregivers should be open to support and resources when making tough choices.
By Sandy Mau

In many ways, Suzanne Mintz fits the profile of the lion’s share of the nation’s 50 million-plus family caregivers. She is a woman, employed, and cares for her loved one at home. Her resources are stretched: time, money, emotions and strength.