Making Senior Living Arrangement For Our Parents

Baby Boomers Beware!

A little over a year ago, we heard the news that my mom would be forced into a long term care facility. I had no idea of the bureaucracy and the limited number of units that faced me surrounding senior living.

Stressful? You had better believe it!

This experience really forced me to reflect on our  senior living arrangements. Our Province and especially our City of Hamilton has a problem.

Retirement Homes

When it comes to senior living, many more seniors are deciding to live in retirement communities; better known as retirement homes. These homes, in most cases, offer meals, supportive medical care, cleaning and housekeeping, and many other social clubs or services. A great example of this kind of senior living is the Village of Wentworth Heights on the Hamilton Mountain. It is a spectacular showcase of future senior living arrangements for our elderly. Where is the problem? The problem is two-fold. There is a shortage of the rental units and most importantly, they are very expensive. Some units in this magnificent building cost up to $5000 per month!!! The Ontario average is $3526 per month. Certainly not cheap!

Unlike B.C. or Alberta, there are no subsidies given to Ontarians.

The Future of Senior Living

Imagine a senior on a fixed income or a government pension? Yikes! Here are some solutions to the problem that I see:

1. More Canadians will chose a reverse mortgage where they are asset rich but cash poor.
2. More units of retirement homes will be built. They are money makers and retirement home owners are quite aware of this.
3. Government assistance may be needed to subsidize basic senior living arrangements.
4. More older people will try to co-habitate to share costs and enjoy social interactions.

Long Term Care Facilities

Long term care facilities where the seniors need 24 hour care is in trouble. The government does subsidize the care but the cost to the patient is fixed. It is not surprising there is a critical shortage of rooms in these facilities. There are non profit organizations for this important area of care. It is scary going to these facilities. We do have a problem and I fear for anyone placing their parents in a senior living facility in the future.

Robert Floris is a Mortgage Broker. His office is located at 651 Fennell Avenue East in Hamilton, Ontario. If you would like to speak with Robert, he can be reached at 905-574-9200 #215. Alternatively, you can contact Robert here.

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