Retirement Communities

Continuing-care retirement communities, life-plan communities, and 55+ neighborhoods.

36 articles

Latest articles in retirement communities

8 Types of Retirement Communities: A Guide for Seniors in 2026
Key Takeaways Finding the right retirement community requires balancing current independence with future care needs while ensuring the chosen option fits within your long-term financial plan. Social connections and community atmosphere prove equally important as care services, since meaningful relationships significantly impact both longevity and quality of life during retirement years. Senior living costs vary…
February 18, 2026

Common questions about retirement communities

What's a CCRC?: Continuing Care Retirement Community - a campus that includes independent living, assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing on one site. Residents move in when independent and transition between care levels on the same campus as their needs change.
What are CCRC entry fees and contract types?: Entry fees are an upfront payment ($100K-$1M+) that gives the resident a long-term-care guarantee. Type A contracts include unlimited future care at a flat monthly rate; Type B includes a discounted rate; Type C is fee-for-service. Refundable contracts return 50-90% of the entry fee to the resident's estate; non-refundable contracts don't.

About retirement communities

Retirement community is an umbrella term covering 55+ neighborhoods (real-estate developments with age restrictions), continuing-care retirement communities (CCRCs - campuses that include independent living through nursing care on one site), and life-plan communities (the rebranded term for high-end CCRCs). The financial structure varies dramatically: some are buy-in with a large entry fee, some are rental-only, some sit in between. Our retirement-community coverage walks through the financial models (Type A through Type C contracts, refundable versus non-refundable entry fees, the math of breaking even), how to evaluate the operator's financial stability (residents have lost six-figure entry fees when CCRCs go bankrupt), and what life is actually like in each model.

We also cover the 55+ neighborhood model - which is real estate, not senior care - for adults who want age-restricted housing without any bundled services.

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