When it comes to senior living, there’s a wide range of options available, from independent and assisted living to memory care, skilled nursing facilities, nursing homes and more. Each retirement community supports older adults in its own way, but one increasingly popular option is luxury senior living.
For 83-year-old Barbara Strength, a luxury assisted living community called The Concierge Club at The Virginian in Fairfax, Virginia, was the best solution when she needed more assistance. After her husband passed, Strength decided to move east from Las Vegas to be closer to her daughter and her family. It took her a few months to get all moved in and settled, but Strength says that “it’s a perfect place under the circumstances. I would highly recommend it.”
Read on to learn all about luxury senior living, what sets these retirement communities apart and what to know before moving in.
[Read: What Is Life Like in an Independent Living Community?]
What Is Luxury Senior Living?
Luxury senior living communities, as the name suggests, emphasize high-end or highly specific amenities and features.
“Some are located near golf courses, so that appeals to a certain demographic, while some boast luxury amenities and others a close proximity to nature or cultural life that appeals to them. They really run the gamut,” says Dr. Elizabeth Landsverk, a geriatrician based in the San Francisco area.
These resort-like communities are not only comfortable and lively, but they can offer a sense of exclusivity, catering to wealthy seniors who value bespoke details. These extra touches can include private patios or balconies, high-end kitchen appliances and in-unit laundry machines, hair and nail salons and multiple restaurants and other dining options.
While many senior living options offer similar amenities, the distinction for a luxury community comes in the quality or specificity of these options. Offering a special amenity that can’t be found elsewhere helps these communities justify a higher price point.
[Read: What Is Life Like in Assisted Living?]
Key Features of Luxury Senior Living Communities
Each community is unique in what it offers, but most luxury senior living will have these high-end features.
High-quality housing
Luxury senior living communities start with really nice living spaces that tend to be more spacious than the senior apartments that are typical in a conventional retirement community.
Strength lives in a two-bedroom unit with a double balcony that spans the entire length of her 1,150-square-foot apartment, which overlooks a wooded area.
In luxury independent living communities, seniors may have their own home or a large apartment or condo. In assisted living, condos or apartments are more common than stand-alone homes. Across the board, high-end finishes and gourmet kitchens are near universal in these communities.
Some have been designed by well-known architecture firms and earned awards for their thoughtful integration of structural and design features. For example, in 2013, Waterstone at Wellesley, a luxury senior living community in Wellesley, Massachusetts, designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects, earned the gold award for excellence in senior housing design from the National Association of Home Builders. That building blends into the surrounding neighborhood with historical mill features while also providing the full range of modern luxuries.
[Read: 7 Signs It’s Time to Move to a Senior Living Facility]
Extensive amenities
In addition to well-appointed kitchens, luxury senior living communities have at least one fine dining restaurant that serves gourmet meals. Some communities, such as Coterie Cathedral Hill in San Francisco, have multiple eateries that match the caliber of some of that city’s finest restaurants.
The Concierge Club has a fine dining restaurant called the Rock Creek Grill with food Strength describes as excellent.
“I have absolutely no complaints,” she says, adding, “If there’s anything special you want, they will go overboard to try and get it for you.”
Daily happy hours at the restaurant encourage socialization among residents.
Residents at The Concierge Club also get a tech package that includes a smart TV, an Apple Watch, an iPad and unlimited tech support.
Nearly all luxury senior living communities also provide housekeeping and laundry services as well as access to home health services.
Other common amenities include:
— Salon, spa and barber shop
— On-site movie theater
— Art studio or crafts room
— Library
— Swimming pool
— Tennis or pickleball courts
Active lifestyle focus
Most senior living communities offer organized fitness classes, and The Concierge Club is no different. Strength says she’s “big on exercise” and takes as many classes as she can that focus on balance and movement, yoga and strength training.
“There are two almost every day, and I participate in both on as many days as they’re available,” she adds.
She’s also joined the book club and can play a number of games, including mahjong and dominoes, that run regularly. Strength says the entertainment offerings go well beyond bingo: “Anything you feel like you’d like to try, it’s available here at some point. They keep you busy.”
Activities that offer entertainment or educational value, such as lectures, arts and crafts sessions and movie nights, are common features of many luxury senior living communities.
For example, Moorings Park Communities in Naples, Florida, has an Institute for Continuous Enrichment. This collaboration with Florida Gulf Coast University brings in specially designed courses ranging from technology and wealth management to travel, religion, medicine, food, the arts and more.
Concierge services
As the name suggests, The Concierge Club, which takes up the entire top floor of the Virginian’s five-story building, offers custom services, including valet parking and butler services. Residents have access to personal transportation options to take them to shopping, to doctor’s appointments or to cultural offerings or restaurants in town.
Personalized care options
Many luxury senior living communities have different levels of care options on-site.
— Independent living. Also sometimes called retirement living or active adult communities, these communities are usually structured as single homes in a neighborhood or apartments or townhouses in a larger building or development. Independent living communities often have an age requirement — residents must be 55 years or older to buy in, for example. They provide opportunities for social connection, activities and other support for older adults to live independently within a community of their peers.
— Assisted living. This type of senior living option provides more support, with a focus on the activities of daily living: dressing, toileting, bathing, hygiene and eating. In a luxury setting, these communities will offer additional support and amenities, including on-site assistance 24 hours per day, which is a perk independent living communities usually do not offer.
— Continuing care retirement community. Also called CCRCs, these tiered communities encompass the various levels of care available and are intended to serve as a one-stop-shop for senior living needs. Residents can graduate from one level of care to the next as needed without having to pack up and move to a new community. This approach provides stability and continuity of social connection and care that can be especially valuable as a senior’s health needs evolve.
— Memory care communities. For older adults who have Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia, a luxury memory care community may be a great option for supporting their intensive care needs.
— Nursing homes. Also sometimes called skilled nursing facilities, these communities provide the highest level of health care services to older adults who need round-the-clock care. These communities may also offer rehabilitation services — such as physical, occupational or speech therapy — with a full-time nurse on-site. Some facilities also have a doctor on-site most or all of the time to assist with health issues that may arise.
“The staff are all so willing to help,” notes Strength about The Concierge Club. “If you have any problems whatsoever, they’re there for you. I couldn’t ask for anything better.”
Higher cost
All these premium services and extras come at a cost, making luxury senior living more expensive than more conventional senior living options. Prices vary based on geographic location, amenities and services offered and the level of care provided.
“The luxury market has kind of exploded — partially as a result of nursing homes being so costly,” says Nancy Avitabile, owner of Urban Eldercare, a geriatric care management practice in New York City.
In the metro New York region where she’s based, Avitabile says nursing home care can cost upwards of $20,000 per month with private pay. By comparison, many luxurious assisted living options run between $17,000 and $20,000 a month.
Noting the dual pressures of inflation and staffing shortages, Genworth Financial’s 2024 Cost of Care Survey reports that in 2024, all long-term care types increased, and most of them outpaced inflation. In the assisted living sector, costs increased 10% year-over-year from a median monthly rate of $5,350 in 2023 to $5,900 monthly in 2024.
Luxury senior living options cost, on average, 30% more than their conventional counterparts, according to SeniorLiving.org. Its estimated national average monthly rate for luxury senior living based on 2023 and 2024 data include:
— $3,900 for independent living
— $7,164 for assisted living
— $11,608 for a semi-private nursing home room
— $13,033 for a private nursing home room
It’s important to do your research and be sure you understand how fees are structured and what your financial responsibilities will be before agreeing to any senior living contract.
It’s also important to note that Medicare doesn’t cover senior living options, either luxury or affordable. And because Medicaid is designed for low-income individuals, it won’t apply in a luxury situation.
Who Is Luxury Senior Living For?
Given the high cost of luxury senior living, older adults who have built a large nest egg for retirement or those with generous long-term care insurance policies are the most likely candidates to take advantage of this expanding market.
Before making a commitment, however, you should consider your future plans and health expectations.
“It’s easy to be tempted to live beyond your means in order to be in a highly desirable community, especially if you have friends and family living there,” Landsverk says. “But it’s important to stay within your means and not take risks that might prove problematic in the future.”
Over time, your need for care will likely increase, as will the cost of that care. For some people, running out of money can become a real concern that limits their lifestyle.
But from her perspective, Strength says luxury senior living at The Concierge Club was the right move.
“I’d do it again in a minute,” she confirms.
To help you find the best senior living option for you, use U.S. News’ new Senior Living search tool.
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What Is Luxury Senior Living? originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 03/21/25: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
