If your goal is to live in the home you love, you’re not alone.
More than 90% of older adults say they want to stay in their own home as they age. Choosing to remain at home isn’t just about a favorite neighborhood or the view from the kitchen window. It’s about control, comfort, and continuity with friends, neighbors, and community groups that make your life your own.
At the same time, planning matters.
About 70% of people 65 and older will need some level of support at some point. It may be temporary help after a surgery or fall or long-term care for chronic conditions. Planning for care early helps you reduce stress, stay safer, and protect your relationships with family members as your needs change.
In this post, we'll cover some of the realities of aging in place, practical steps to support senior independence, and how Kendal at Home combines care coordination with lifetime care coverage to help older adults thrive at home.
Why Senior Independence Is On The Rise
Familiarity and comfort.
For older adults, home is a place filled with a lifetime of memories. You've spent years personalizing it with your routines, your decor, your garden, and your favorite walking route. That familiarity supports confidence and well-being.
Community and connection.
Living close to friends and family, neighbors, parks, and local shops makes it easier to stay socially active, one of the most important factors for long-term overall physical and emotional health as well as a sense of purpose.
Less disruption and lower cost.
Avoiding a move to assisted living facilities or large senior living communities helps you maintain your routine. And for many, staying at home with the right support services is more affordable than relocating.
Consider these national averages from Genworth and CareScout:
- Independent living communities cost over $36,000 per year
- Assisted living facilities cost over $70,000 per year
- Nursing homes cost over $111,000 per year for a semi-private room and more for a private room
Compare this to the costs of having a care coordinator who understands your needs and can arrange for in-home caregiving and other services when you need them. With Kendal at Home, you pay a one-time membership fee and monthly fee that includes a personal care coordinator and up to $15,000 in guaranteed coverage for in-home care per month.
This coverage can be used toward caregiving or other related expenses as they’re needed.
What independent living looks like
Daily activities and home maintenance.
Independent living often includes managing daily tasks like cooking, laundry, and yard work.
These activities are part of your routine today, but they can become more difficult if you have an injury, illness or mobility challenges later.
Knowing when to bring in trusted partners like a housekeeper or someone to help with home repairs helps you keep your home in good condition so you can continue to thrive there.
Transportation and appointments.
While there are more people over 65 driving than ever before and they are among the safest drivers by demographic, statistics show about 30% of women stop driving in their 70s, and only 22% continue to drive once they reach 85.
Men continue to drive longer on average, but about 55% of men stop driving at 85.
Older adults are also less likely to drive at night and more likely to pay higher insurance premiums once they turn 74.
For doctor appointments or community events, having trusted transportation options supports your routine and keeps you connected. Kendal at Home can arrange for transportation as needed and cover it at no cost for medically necessary appointments.
Social activities and new friendships.
A longitudinal study of over 13,600 adults with an average age of 65 found those who were more socially active were less likely to experience cognitive decline, heart disease, and limited mobility. They also tended to live longer than their peers.
Regularly meeting with others through book clubs, faith-based groups, volunteering or neighborhood activities can help you build new friendships and maintain a stronger sense of well-being.
Physical health.
Staying healthy and active can reduce risk factors for developing many of the most common chronic conditions among older adults, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and heart disease.
There are many ways you can make time for physical activity, whether it's taking daily walks with your dog, joining fitness classes, or riding your bike.
Staying active helps you maintain balance and prevent falls that can lead to hospitalization.
Regular checkups, health screenings and assessments to identify changes in mobility or nutrition early can also help you avoid health problems later in life.
Kendal at Home’s care coordinators offer several different types of assessments to members to help them stay proactive.
Safer homes support independent living
Senior independence is about having the right mix of services, support, and community resources so you can keep doing life your way. Small changes add up.
Here are some simple, practical updates that help many older adults remain at home:
Prevent falls with simple fixes.
Install grab bars in bathrooms, add non-slip mats, secure loose rugs, declutter walkways, and add brighter lighting in hallways, stairs, and entryways. These updates create a safer path through your home.
Make rooms easier to use.
Consider walk-in showers, shower chairs, handheld showerheads, and pull-out shelves in the kitchen so daily living tasks feel easier and safer.
Improve mobility between floors.
If stairs have become a barrier, ramps, a second handrail or a stairlift can keep your own home accessible without a disruptive move.
Build-in smart home support.
Motion-sensor lights, video doorbells, and smart locks can add a layer of security and peace of mind for seniors living alone or those who travel frequently.
Plan For Care Before You Need It
Seniors who plan to stay in their homes benefit from a clear plan for providing support when life changes—after a fall, during a hospital stay, or while managing a chronic condition.
Kendal at Home offers services to keep you healthy longer and help you navigate changes so you can stay independent even when something unexpected happens.
Every member is paired with a care coordinator who gets to know you and meets with you regularly to identify your needs and help you manage them.
Watch this video to learn more about how Kendal at Home helps you stay independent.
Coordinators complete functional, nutritional, and fall-prevention assessments, help coordinate medical services; refer trusted caregivers, and can even assist with transportation to doctor appointments. They step in to ask the right questions during a hospital stay and make sure support services continue at home.
Kendal at Home membership includes a lifetime guarantee of care coverage that stays with you, even if you move. With our support, 98% of members successfully remain in their homes, a powerful proof point for senior independence and aging in place.
Membership also includes resources to support physical health and well-being today—exercise videos, wellness programs, social opportunities, to name just a few—so independent living feels easier now, not just “someday.”
How Having a Plan Reduces Stress
Many people who plan to spend their retirement at home express some common concerns or hear them from their adult children as they get older. Here are a few scenarios that can arise and how planning ahead can help you prepare for them.
“What if I have a fall?”
Falls are the leading cause of injury and injury deaths among adults 65 and older, affecting one in four in 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A coordinator can assess your mobility and risks for falling as you age and arrange for home safety updates, such as installing grab bars, lighting or railings to prevent falls. If you do have a fall and need to be hospitalized, they can assist with a discharge plan and advocate on your behalf so you have the resources you need to recover at home, including physical therapy.
“Can someone help me manage doctors appointments and medications?”
Medication mix-ups are a frequent reason for emergency visits. Care coordinators can help with medication reviews, organize information for health care providers, and set up transportation to doctor appointments to keep care on track.
“I live alone. Who will help if something changes?”
For seniors living alone, knowing one call activates support reduces worry. Care coordinators connect you to vetted community resources, in-home aides, and other services or providers. They also keep friends and family in the loop, keeping relationships strong.
“I don’t want to burden my family.”
Caregiving can be meaningful, but also exhausting. Many caregivers report poor sleep and multiple chronic conditions. A plan with coverage and a coordinator eases the load so loved ones can focus on being family.
Why Kendal at Home is the strongest partner for seniors
At Kendal at Home, we believe older adults should enjoy the freedom of living at home with support that helps them stay as independent as possible.
For more than 20 years, we’ve been an alternative to senior living communities, backed by the longtime expertise of the Kendal Corporation and our Quaker values.
Our membership combines the security of long-term care coverage with the personalized support of a dedicated care coordinator who gets to know you before you need them and advocates on your behalf when you may need more support.
Care coordinators perform assessments and check in regularly with members, introducing them to resources that help them stay healthy and arranging for in-home care when it’s needed.
It’s lifetime care coverage that follows you. Your plan goes where you go, and with our support 98% of members remain at home.
With the right support, senior adults can keep their routines, reduce stress, and feel comfortable, confident and safe in the home they love today and in the years ahead.
To learn more about how we can help, register for an upcoming virtual. Seminar.
