Moving house is always a huge decision, and if that move is into an assisted living complex it can feel like an even bigger one. In truth, though, these centres are a lot homier and less institutional than people sometimes imagine them to be: when it's the right time for you to look into an assisted living facility, you could well find it to be one of the best decisions you've ever made.
Assisted living means different things to different people.
There isn't one single definition of an assisted living facility. Some are single buildings with private rooms and shared spaces for eating and socialising together, much like care homes. Others are apartment blocks containing many individual homes, each of which have full kitchen and living facilities of their own. A few are entire estates made up of many separate homes, with a central hub for staff to work out of and for social activities to take place in. Whatever your needs, there will be a complex designed to meet them: some are geared at the different stages of aging, some cater to people of all ages with a particular disability or set of requirements and some cater to a mixture of needs and have a diverse population of residents from all stages of life.
Assisted living is designed to protect independence, not curtail it.
Facilities like these are designed to meet the needs you have currently and help you prepare for needs you may have in the future, rather than to force you to live to a certain schedule or in a particular way. They're rarely closed complexes, and there will only be rules about when or for how long you go out if those are pre-agreed as something necessary for your own safety, such as with Alzheimer's or other causes of dementia. There are often no more restrictions on visiting hours than there would be in a private home, and you'll be supported and encouraged to keep up your own personal habits and routines.
Assisted living can both save you money and protect your savings.
Many people think of assisted living as an expensive option, but in many cases the reverse is true. Care at home outside of an assisted living facility usually costs far more, particularly in the long term, and can be more difficult to adapt to your own specific circumstances. Assisted living rents are usually lower than market rent in the local area, as they aren't open to everyone and therefore aren't subject to the same market forces as private renting. Because care costs are shared and spread out across the facility, the savings versus having carers come into your existing home can be gigantic.