Senior housing options expand due to growth

"In Central Texas, a lot of folks have children who have moved to the area, and it's an attractive place to retire. So people will move here to be closer to grandchildren and children," Hefner said. "The corridor of Cedar Park and Leander, that has a higher concentration of our Williamson County clients, as well as Georgetown. If we look at the pockets of demand, that [area] is one of them."

Development underway

In Cedar Park and Leander, at least four senior housing complexes are under construction in addition to the Merritt Skye project approved by Leander City Council on March 6. A joint assisted-living and memory-care facility, Legacy at Crystal Falls, broke ground last fall and is set to open in November.

Charles Turner, principal at PinPoint Commercial, which is a partner in developing Legacy at Crystal Falls, said Leander's first assisted-living community is similar to the company's offerings in Georgetown. The location was chosen based on specific demographics, he said.

"We like to identify places that are sort of localized. We get the benefit of being part of a larger [metropolitan service area], but we also get to brand ourselves as that community's senior housing community," Turner said. "After we got our sights on the contract [to build in Leander], the guys who owned the site before we did got many calls about the land [from developers] wanting to do the same thing."

Under construction in Cedar Park is US Memory Care, which broke ground Feb. 18 at C-Bar Ranch Trail and Whitestone Boulevard. The 75-bed health care facility for seniors with Alzheimer's disease and dementia is expected to open in late 2014.

A similar facility, Sundance at Brushy Creek, is under construction at Glacier Pass and West Parmer lanes in Cedar Park. The 40-room community is expected to open by fall 2014.

Additionally, the first building of a 75-bed Alzheimer's care facility, Avalon Cedar Park Memory Care, is under construction in Cedar Park at Old Mill Road and Lakeline Boulevard with an expected opening date of August. Owner Ray Atkinson said he chose the location because of its accessibility to several communities as well as the area's high household incomes. The facility will care for mid- to late-term Alzheimer's patients in a secure environment, he said.

"People with Alzheimer's can get easily confused and sometimes wander off," Atkinson said. "We have customized care for each resident, and we use no-conflict techniques. As a palliative care facility, we try to keep our residents as happy as they can be."

Types of housing

Community housing options for seniors can be beneficial, said George Linial, president and CEO of LeadingAge Texas, a trade organization for nonprofit retirement housing providers. Seniors typically get more socialization in an apartment, assisted-living or other group living arrangement than if they lived alone, he said.

"There are some advantages to putting people together in a congregate setting where they can eat meals together or have some social activities together. It really contributes a lot to their well-being," he said. "If you are isolated without a lot of social support, it's generally not a good thing and people end up having bad outcomes."

The amount of care offered varies by facility, Linial said, just as the needs of seniors vary because of health and age. While 11 percent of seniors nationwide age 65–74 require some sort of in-home assistance, that number increases to 49 percent for seniors age 85 and older, he said.

The most basic housing offered exclusively for seniors is independent living at age-restricted, multifamily communities. The level of care is increased in an assisted-living setting, where caretakers are available to manage medication, assist with meals and bathing, and to check on residents.

Memory care facilities offer many of the amenities of assisted living but with increased security for residents with dementia or Alzheimer's.

"A lot of people with Alzheimer's develop it at a relatively younger age, so they may not have a lot of the health issues other than the memory care," Linial said. "Memory care is the right place for those residents, but as they develop other health issues in addition to Alzheimer's, then nursing care is probably the best option."

Decisive factors

According to the Brookings Institution, the Austin area has the third-fastest growth rate of adults age 65 and older in the U.S. Those looking to relocate to Central Texas could be moving closer to family or getting out of a financially unsustainable living arrangement, Hefner said.

"There are people who have been in their home for many years, and it may be more expensive for them to maintain that home on a fixed income," she said. "And then they have to start juggling chronic health conditions, and that adds to the demand on the funds to take care of their needs."

For seniors looking at apartments, the options in Cedar Park and Leander tend to be more cost-effective, she said.

"We are seeing now, and what's interesting, is people are moving out to the western part of Travis County as well as the Williamson County area because it is less of a cost out there," she said.

When seniors seek their next home, it is important to be informed, Linial said. Planning and site visits can prevent families from hastily choosing unsuitable housing.

"You definitely want something that is convenient so the family can come visit often," Linial said. "The other thing is to actually go visit these [facilities] before you have to be in crisis mode and pick something right then and there. You can get a good feel of the place just by walking in."