Along with deciding when and how to claim Social Security benefits, picking the right retirement community is one of the biggest decisions a client can make.
As explored by Alexandra Armstrong, a CFP, in the latest edition of the Journal of Financial Planning, there’s more to consider than just the location and price tag. Additional factors include the client's marital status, lifestyle expectations, health outlook and family dynamic.
Armstrong recounts her and her late husband’s personal experience buying into a continuing care retirement community in Florida several years ago. In Armstrong’s case, her husband’s deteriorating health and a year-long wait list for a suitable apartment took a lot of the joy out of the process.
“So, lesson No. 1, move while you are still healthy enough to enjoy your new home and become a member of the community,” Armstrong writes. “After we moved, my husband was in and out of the hospital for the next two years. However, I had the comfort that he could rehabilitate at the same facility where we lived.”
That experience helped Armstrong integrate herself into the community by the time her husband died in 2024.
Having lived the experience that she had coached many clients through during four decades as a financial planner, Armstrong says, she understands that moving into a retirement community isn’t for everyone. But it can be particularly appropriate for single women who either don’t have children or whose children aren’t able — financially or physically — to help them as they age.
If a client decides a retirement community is the right choice, Armstrong says, that’s just the beginning. Her article offers a rundown of how to best navigate the process.
See the accompanying slideshow for seven factors to weigh in the decision.
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