Somebody comes into independent living in a retirement community. What does it offer? Generally it takes care of housekeeping, provides meals, and lots of social activities. Joan Rettmann from Transforming Age joins Suzanne to summarize the various offerings.

Joan says, "One of the things that a lot of people appreciate most is a release from some of the domestic responsibilities, like housekeeping for instance. Not having to do that is quite appealing to a lot of folks. There's always a meal plan. So it's not surprising that food is oftentimes towards the top of the list. Various meal plans are offered; sometimes it might be one meal a day included, or potentially up to three. The third key area would be in terms of the activities that are offered, or lifestyle events that are offered in a community. So that might be lectures, seminars, fitness classes, those kinds of things.

"If it's one that's just independent living, and there aren't additional care levels available, it's usually on the lighter side with meal services. So it might be one meal a day that's included. Housekeeping may not be as frequent as, say, in communities that offer additional levels of care. There might be a great activities calendar, but it might not be quite as robust as the other models. Regardless of what option you're looking for, it's good to compare to make sure those differences become very clear."

* Transforming Age website
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