The senior living industry often assumes that there will be a family caregiver available to support an older adult when they need help. But that’s increasingly not the case as more people are living alone for longer.
Here, we unpack what it means to be a solo ager and how to prepare for the time when you won’t be able to advocate for yourself anymore.
[SEE: Top Habits and Trends for Healthy Aging: 2025 U.S. News & World Report Healthy Aging Survey]
The Rise of the Solo Ager in 2026
Author and speaker Sara Zeff Geber coined the term “solo ager” to describe the more than 22 million adults over age 55 who live alone and are living without the support of family. These individuals don’t have a spouse and some never had children, while others are estranged from them. No matter the specific circumstances, a growing cohort of Americans is facing aging by themselves.
“Longevity is playing a huge part,” explains Joy Loverde, the Chicago-based author of “The Complete Eldercare Planner, 4th Edition” and “Who Will Take Care of Me When I’m Old?”
“Just because you might be all snug as a bug in a rug right now, there’s a good chance that the longer you live, the more likely it is that you will be living alone,” Loverde says. You may be “the last one standing” as friends and loved ones die or move away over time.
To put some data behind that, consider the Administration for Community Living’s “2023 Profile of Older Americans” which reported that about 28% of all older adults living independently in the community lived alone in 2023. Of those 16.2 million people, 5.7 million were men and 10.5 million were women.
The proportion of people living alone increases in step with age — among women aged 75 and older, 42% lived alone.
There can be a wide range of reasons why someone finds themselves aging alone, including:
— Never marrying or partnering
— Death of a spouse or partner
— Divorce or separation
— Not having children
— Being estranged from next of kin
Such individuals may have adult children, but their children may:
— Live too far away to be able to provide day-to-day assistance
— Become unavailable because of other obligations or illness
— Be unwilling to participate in their parent’s care
In short, there’s a growing number of “senior orphans” out there who are aging solo without children, says Teri Frykenberg, a board-certified patient advocate and the owner of Nurse Advocate Entrepreneur, a private advocate consultancy based in Monson, Massachusetts.
And it’s true that retirement for singles looks different than for partnered older adults and those with adult children nearby who are willing to help.
“So much of the estate planning and long-term care planning system assumes you have a next of kin. It’s all based on that assumption,” explains Jay Zigmont, founder and CEO of Childfree Trust, a Tennessee-based professional fiduciary estate partner for childfree and permanently childless people. But not everyone has that, he adds.
Not having an advocate to speak up on your behalf when you’re unable to do so for yourself can significantly reduce quality of life and hasten end of life, so aging adults need to consider how they’ll manage if they end up alone later in life.
[READ: How to Prepare for End of Life: Medical Care and Planning]
Professional Elder Care Advocates and Advisors for Solo Agers
Hiring a care manager or professional patient advocate is a good option for older adults who don’t have a local support network.
Frykenberg was an intensive care unit nurse for 39 years before launching her advocacy business in 2010. Advocates like her who have a nursing background can help prevent older adults from “falling through the cracks,” she says. “We’re particularly good for families struggling with parents with dementia and people going in and out of the hospital and not getting quality of care.”
Also sometimes called geriatric care managers for solo agers, medical liaisons, case managers or health navigators, these professionals can act as the project manager for your job of aging, Frykenberg explains. “Patient advocates are like care managers on steroids. We really go to the wall for people.”
“We make sure that people have their financial, legal and medical affairs in order and make changes in the home so they can stay and age in place if that’s safe,” Frykenberg says.
[SEE: Ways an Elder Law Attorney Can Help Families]
Your Solo Aging Support Team
While there can be any number of individuals you trust who can help you with elements of your life as a solo ager, the following roles are key to ensuring that your most important needs are met.
The key to aging successfully without family nearby is to be proactive, Loverde says. “It takes time to build trust,” she notes, and when you’re looking to build a relationship with an aging life plan professional, a legal advisor or a professional fiduciary, starting before you have a crisis on your hands is always preferable to waiting until you’re forced into urgent action.
Where to Find Solo Aging Support Professionals
You may need to work with more than one organization or professional to ensure all your needs are met as a solo ager, and there are number of places you can seek this support.
You can sometimes get trust companies or estate planners and estate attorneys to fill some of these roles for you, Zigmont says, but these professionals often can’t or won’t manage the medical side of a person’s affairs.
As you develop your support team, Zigmont recommends looking for independent, unbiased professionals rather than relying solely on advisors who might have a financial reason to steer you in a certain direction.
For example, advisors who are affiliated with or employed by a senior living facility you’re considering are likely to be well-versed in local resources and will certainly have the inside track on the specific community where they’re based; an independent advocate may be able to give you a broader view and unbiased assessment of other options or strategies that might better suit your needs.
Loverde agrees that you need to consider carefully whom you entrust with these important duties. “Any professional that you think you’re going to bring into your network of support, you have to vet them now. You have to get to know them now and see what their plan is and the plan you make together with them if and when something happens.”
But don’t procrastinate, because that can lead to a worse outcome, Zigmont cautions. “If you don’t have somebody that’s legally your partner, when bad stuff happens and you don’t have your papers in place, you’ll get a court-appointed conservator guardian. And nobody wants that,” he says, alluding to the loss of legal and financial freedom and control — often at the hands of a stranger who might abuse or exploit you or simply not understand what’s important to you.
You can ask a friend to fill this role, but his point is, it’s important to make a decision — “because if you don’t make a decision, the government makes it for you,” Zigmont says.
To aid in finding qualified professionals to assist you, Frykenberg recommends searching for an independent patient advocate in your area through the Greater National Advocates database, the largest national database of professional patient advocates in the country.
She adds that this field is expanding to help meet the needs of a growing number of older adults who might otherwise fall through the cracks.
The bottom line: It’s important to develop a workable plan for the future as early as you can.
What to Look for in a Community When You’re Solo
Most older adults want to age in place in their own home, but physically, it gets to a point where it’s harder and harder to do that, Frykenberg says. Individuals with significant financial resources can hire a 24-hour caregiver in the home and keep up their property, but that’s the most expensive option, Frykenberg says.
Safety issues and the high cost of keeping a household going for one individual often forces older adults into a communal living situation, which can be more economical for meeting daily needs and can provide social contact to prevent loneliness. So which options are best for senior living for solo agers?
Lifestyle-first approach
Think about what’s important to you and how you want to spend your free time, then look for a community that prioritizes that lifestyle and is designed to incorporate those activities in your daily life. For example, if you love to golf, seek out a community that caters specifically to golfers and provides access to a nearby course.
Peer-led culture
Many communities offer staff-run activities and outings, but some older adults can find a real sense of purpose by contributing their skills and talents in the community by running a group, leading a lecture or otherwise driving an activity. Look for communities where residents are offered a chance to contribute in a meaningful way.
Transportation reliability
Consider how you’ll get around on and off campus. This concern is especially important for solo agers with medical needs that require visits to providers outside the facility or living community. Is there a shuttle bus? Can a staffer drive you where you need to go? Or will you have to rely on public transportation?
Affordability
Solo aging can be very expensive, Zigmont says, and “money buys better care. I hate to admit that, but it’s just the reality check.”
Zigmont underscores that “Medicare does not pay for long-term care, and Medicaid only pays once you’re broke.” And, he adds, neither fixes the problem of who makes the decisions for you when you can’t do that for yourself.
So, carefully check your budget and work with a financial expert to help you determine what you can afford now and as your care needs change.
True community sensibility
Don’t get hung up on the fixtures or amenities that don’t add tangible value, such as crystal chandeliers. They look nice, sure, but when it comes down to it, ensuring you get the social support and care you need should take precedence over interior decoration and other superficial amenities.
Why a CCRC may be your best bet as a solo ager
Ideally, you’ll find a living situation that’s comfortable and meets all your needs within your budget. This can be a tall order, but for some — especially solo agers who anticipate having escalating care needs in the future — a continuing care retirement community might be your best option.
These communities are designed to support you across the spectrum of your remaining lifespan. The idea is to enter the community well before you need assistance to take full advantage of the many amenities these communities typically provide and then as your needs increase, more services come to you. These communities eliminate the need to move to a new community as you transition from independent to assisted living or memory care.
Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities for Solo Agers
Some communities designed specifically for solo agers are deliberately planned while others develop organically. Loverde says her apartment building in Chicago is a prime example of a naturally occurring retirement community (NORC), in which a high proportion of the residents are older adults.
NORCs evolve over time as younger residents age or move out and older residents move in. The upside to such communities is finding kinship among peers and neighbors who will help each other out when needed.
Case in point: Loverde moved into her central Chicago apartment building 30 years ago, and she’s stayed because “the location is perfect; there’s a grocery store down the street, my nail place is over there and there are lots of restaurants nearby. Everything I need is right at my doorstep, including bus stops and taxis.”
Over time, Loverde and her neighbors have become good friends and a true community that help each other when needed. She explains that as some neighbors and friends in the building have aged and died, she and other neighbors took care of them.
“They never, ever had to worry about who is going to go grocery shopping for them, who’s going to watch TV with them, who’s going to feed them. We created this atmosphere of caring around ourselves, and it just happened organically because we like the people who live here.”
If you’re not already living in such a cohesive community environment, it might be time to start looking for such in your area to make solo aging a little less lonesome.
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Choosing Senior Living When You Don?t Have Family Nearby originally appeared on usnews.com
