Scaling Down: Housing Options for Seniors
by Constance Young

In 2006, the oldest "baby boomers" turned 60. Baby boomers (children born between 1946 and 1964) now number over 78 million. When added to the army of older seniors, this makes for a huge and growing market for elders who want to scale down, and for their aging parents who may need assisted care. As people age, living in a big house can become increasingly difficult. Climbing steep stairs may be an obstacle and keeping up with maintenance can be challenging or too costly.

Some developers who are paying attention (and want to take advantage of government financing options) are building facilities in the area geared for seniors, including "retirement communities." Some housing options, such as the subsidized High Pointe Senior Apartments for independent seniors in Columbia County (in Chatham) and the private multi-service Fountains at Millbrook, have established reputations and waiting lists. Others, like Arbor Ridge in Rhinebeck, are under construction. Still others are going through the approval process. This article will cover most of these projects and others in Dutchess County north of Poughkeepsie, and will discuss a few other housing options for seniors.

Scaling down
Seniors can scale down in several ways — from setting up an accessory rental apartment in their own home to reduce their housing costs, to moving to a smaller house or apartment, or to another type of age-restricted or mixed-age housing complex.

People with adequate incomes and savings might decide to move to a retirement colony with multi-levels of independence or care. Financially stable seniors might instead move to an intergenerational community built around a golf club, like the one now in Red Hook, or the huge proposed Carvel project in Pine Plains and Milan, still in the approval process. Another option is to buy or rent a townhouse, apartment or condominium in a privately-funded community for Independent Living seniors, which might consist of landscaped condominium townhouses (such as the Towne Centre Adult Community now being built in Pine Plains).

For seniors on lower or more moderate incomes, there are "affordable" subsidized housing arrangements such as High Pointe in Chatham and Stone Ledge in Hyde Park, and others are on the drawing board. Section 8 housing, administered by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and often unpopular because it is perceived as having a negative effect on property values, allows eligible seniors to live in privately owned housing while paying no more than 30 percent of their monthly income in rent. According to Dutchess County Housing and Development coordinator Ann Saylor, there is surprisingly little Section 8 housing in the area.

Retirement Communities: A Full Complex of Care and Independence.
There are several types of "retirement communities," depending on licensing and financing arrangements. Most have several levels of care and payment schedules and a variety of attractive services — a dining room, laundry, exercise room, computer room, wellness center, hiking paths, etc. In most cases, qualified seniors enter while they are still active and living independently. As they age and need assistance, they can move up to another level of care, called Assisted Living; and finally, if needed, to a Skilled Care Facility (nursing home) on the premises.

Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs) are restricted to a minimum age on admission and have a range of living units and services. To qualify as a CCRC, a facility must fulfill New York State licensing requirements and offer a continuum of services that include Independent Living, Assisted Living and Skilled Nursing Care in a central, planned and administered location. CCRCs are part housing complex, part activity center, and part skilled healthcare center. To enter the independent living quarters you must generally pay both a large upfront fee (in the $200,000 to $300,000-and-over range as well as a monthly fee (around $2,000 a month or more). Should you then give up your independent housing unit and move into Assisted Living, in most cases you would get back a large percentage of your up-front cost (about 90%), but your monthly fees will increase, sometimes significantly. Woodland Pond, now under construction in New Paltz, calls itself "the first CCRC in the mid-Hudson Valley." Several retirement communities in the area have many, though not all of the same services, with different financing arrangements. In the late 1970s and early 1980s some of the early CCRCs underestimated the future costs of skilled nursing care and spent too much of the entrance fees on current expenses, which resulted in financial failure in some cases or the inability to deliver promised services. Because of these failures, New York and other states have established accreditation standards and other strict requirements for CCRCs and Life Care Retirement communities. People considering moving to such a facility should examine that facility's financial health before signing a contract.

Life Care Retirement Communities are similar to CCRCs and offer the full range of housing and healthcare options on a single coordinated campus. The difference between Life Care Retirement Communities and CCRCs is somewhat muddy, but the distinction is based largely on costs. According to Sandy Nosonowitz, director of marketing for Arbor Ridge (a retirement community now under construction), although both CCRCs and Life Care communities generally charge a large up-front fee as well as a monthly fee, Life Care facilities also usually charge a 5-figure "lock-in" fee. This additional fee guarantees on-site assisted living and nursing care for life with no change in monthly fees. Fox Run Life Care Retirement Communities (there is one in Orchard Park, New York) are model Life Care communities.

Other Retirement Communities. Sandy Burkett, director of marketing for The Fountains of Millbrook, explains that "retirement living can mean different things." Some "leisure communities" for people 55 years and older have few if any services. Others may have most of the services of CCRCs or Life Care Retirement communities, but may not fulfill the licensing, fee structure, or other requirements for CCRCs or Life Care communities. The resort-style 200-acre Fountains at Millbrook and the proposed 75-acre Arbor Ridge, under construction at the site of the Baptist Home at Brookmeade in Rhinebeck, both resemble CCRCs, but with a few differences.

The Fountains of Millbrook has 95 apartments (studios and one- and 2-bedroom units), some with screened porches, and 44 rental cottage homes with garages. All units have a kitchen or kitchenette and there is a "restaurant style" dining room on site. According to The Fountains' director of marketing, Sandy Burkett, although they are a licensed Assisted Living healthcare facility, they do not have a nursing home on site so they are not a full CCRC. The Assisted Living program helps with the activities of daily living such as bathing, dressing and grooming. Both programs provide medication assistance and the assurance of 24-hour staffing. Other services include computer and art classes, housekeeping, laundry, transportation, a fitness center and a heated pool. Although some senior housing does not allow companion animals, The Fountains at Millbrook allows residents to have two pets. For more information call 845-905-8000 or go to the web site at www.TheFountains.com.

Arbor Ridge, on the campus of the Baptist Home at Brookmeade, which is sponsoring the entire community, is breaking ground this fall with a plan for residents to start moving in some time in 2008. According to director of marketing Sande Nosonowitz, they are in the "pre-sale stage" and are accepting deposits. Nosonowitz adds that because there are three levels of care on one campus, Arbor Ridge is similar to, though "not officially a CCRC." The Independent Living section requires both an entrance fee (90% refundable), plus the monthly charge. People in Independent Living will have priority placement for Assisted Living or the nursing home, for which there are different monthly charges. They also retain the flexibility of moving to a different location for such care. The emphasis at Arbor Ridge is on the "six dimensions of wellness." There will be 54 Independent Living apartments, each including a full kitchen, washer/dryer, and emergency call system. Other features will include a dining room, café, indoor swimming pool, fitness and wellness center, library, and hair salon. For more information, call them at 845-876-3344 or visit the Arbor Ridge Welcome Center in person at 8 Livingston Street, Suite 10, or visit their website: www.arborridgeliving.com.

Independent Living Communities
Independent Living communities encompass a variety of types of housing-rental apartments, condominiums, and townhouses, all designed to allow independent seniors to enjoy a scaled-down lifestyle. While some facilities are private, others are subsidized and use federal or state resources. The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program gives federal tax credits to owners and investors in qualified low-income housing. In return, the owner and manager must follow certain leasing rules and guidelines. For example, projects developed and managed by the private, not-for profit partnership called Housing Resources, which has projects in Columbia County (in Chatham, and underway in Copake) and in the planning stage in Millerton, receive LIHTC tax credits as well as a state Housing Trust Fund Program grant for affordable housing. The Stone Ledge Senior Apartments in Hyde Park is another local project that received a Housing Trust Fund award. In Ulster County, the Birches at Saugerties, with 60 units under construction, and the Woodstock Commons with 53 intergenerational units being built, of which seniors occupy 20 one-bedroom apartments, both recently received grants for affordable housing.

Independent housing units may be either publicly owned or managed by a local housing authority, or publicly subsidized but privately owned and managed. The following are a few existing and planned Independent Living housing units.

Housing Resources, Inc. is a private, not-for-profit company that for more than 20 years has provided housing and home preservation opportunities to low and moderate income seniors. They are developer and manager of "affordable" senior and mixed-age apartments in Columbia and Dutchess counties. Two of their projects are High Pointe in Chatham and the proposed Millerton Overlook, which has been undergoing a contentious approval process.

High Pointe in Chatham is now occupied and undergoing Phase Two of construction. It is a joint venture between Housing Resources and the for-profit Rosen Development Company, Inc. of Albany, which has over 40 years experience in building and development. High Pointe has 26 one-bedroom units (ranging from $325 and up) and 10 two-bedroom units (ranging from $492 and up). Heat and hot water are included in the monthly rent. Some units are handicap accessible/adaptable. To be eligible for an apartment in High Pointe, the applicant must be age 55 and older and have an annual income not exceeding 50 percent of the Columbia County median income. Both High Pointe and Millerton Overlook have a sliding scale of payment.

Millerton Overlook, also being developed by Housing Resources, is now in the approval process. Plans call for 20 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments in seven buildings. Nine of the apartments will be restricted to seniors who will be allowed to keep one dog or cat. Rents for the senior one-bedroom apartment will range between $650 and $700. Kevin O'Neill, developer and co-manager, told AboutTown that he expects approvals this year and expects to begin construction in the Spring of 2007, with apartments completed by the Summer of 2008. That is, of course, if they are able to iron out some of the issues posed by the proposed project's neighbors and the Millerton Planning Board. O'Neill says that they are now taking names of people interested in renting. Call Housing Resources at 518-671-6039 for more information.

Stone Ledge Senior Apartments (in Hyde Park) is currently under construction, with a goal of 84 one- and two-bedroom apartments with 1 or 1-1/2 baths. Eligible seniors must be at least 55 years of age or older and have an annual income no greater than $25,700. Apartments will have dishwashers and disposals, and there will be an on-site wellness center, library/computer room, exercise room, community room with kitchen, laundry and more. According to manager Carol Anson, people on lower floors will have a patio, and on upper floors decks. She explains that to make affordable housing possible, Conifer Realty has received a mixture of state funding. Anson adds that Stone Ledge "will be pet friendly," although there is a $300 non-refundable fee to have an animal. Anson thinks there should be a lot more communities for seniors. "I'm loving running this complex," she announced. According to Anson, other senior housing is now being planned in Hyde Park on St. Andrews Road.

Towne Center is now under construction in Pine Plains. This privately funded development will be sold at market rate to people age 55 and over. The plan is to ultimately build 44 to 46 landscaped townhouses that will have one- or two-bedrooms with a garage. For more information contact John Reilly at 518-398-0010.

Assisted Living Programs (ALP) and Adult Homes
Facilities licensed for Assisted Living offer a combination of housing and personalized supportive services and caregiving which includes giving medications and helping residents bathe and get dressed.

According to supervising public health nurse Esther Evans of the Department of Aging in Poughkeepsie, current New York State law has strict rules governing Assisted (also called "Assistive") Living that were established in 2005. According to the new law, Assisted Living facilities must undergo state licensing and oversight. Before the new law went into effect, facilities that gave special care to seniors but did not qualify as nursing homes, would call themselves Assisted (or Assistive) Living facilities. Facilities such as the Vassar Warner Home and Woodside Manor, which were previously called Assisted Living, are now called "Adult Homes" because they do not fulfill all requirements for Assisted Living. Adult Homes must provide a bed in a double or private room and three meals a day. Someone also must be present to give medications and a minimal amount of personal care. On the other hand, Assisted Living facilities must provide everything that Adult Homes require along with giving additional help with personal care, such as bathing and dressing. Low- and moderate-income Assisted Living facilities may be covered by Medicaid, not Medicare.

Two-Level Care Housing Low or Moderate Incomes
Some facilities that offer two levels of care, like Dutchess Care or Dutchess Manor in Poughkeepsie, have Independent Living and Assisted Living rooms. According to administrator Nicole Winston, the Assisted Living section of Dutchess Manor is for people who need some care, and who will get help with their medication and laundry, for example, but not full assistance with activities of daily living that they would get in a nursing home. Residents can have their meals in a dining room on the premises. Independent Living seniors can do everything on their own and have access to the dining room. There are no private rooms, and rooms are shared two to a room.

Dutchess County Office for the Aging has a brochure, "Senior Citizen Housing in Dutchess County," that contains a fairly up-to-date listing of low income and other subsidized housing in the area. Call toll free at 866-486-2555 for a copy of the brochure or go to their web site www.dutchessny.gov/countygov/departments/aging/agindex.htm.

In the Works and Under Consideration
Red Hook has an "affordable" housing project underway on the former Perx property on Route 9 in the Village of Red Hook. The project is being constructed in two phases, with 48 one- and two-bedroom units in each phase, says developer Ken Kearney. Phase 2 will break ground "in the next few months," he adds, with rentals running from $300 to $645/month. There will be a community room and washer/dryer in every building.

According to Kearney, the building is managed by Kearney Realty Group and they are a private investment partnership using tax advantages and tax credits (not Section 8). To be eligible, a family of two must make under $33,000, a single person under $29,000. Everyone, including a caregiver, must be over 62 years.

There is nothing in place yet in Amenia, but according to town member Betty Rooney, who has been studying affordable housing for seniors, Amenia has the largest percentage of seniors in Dutchess County and the interest is definitely there. She adds that many seniors in Amenia and vicinity would like to see more affordable housing in the area. The town of Amenia is looking for land, says Rooney, and for a builder willing to build "affordable" — but not Section 8 — housing.

Amenia is certainly not alone in its fear of bringing in low income housing under HUD and giving up control of housing to the Federal government, which governs and operates "public housing" built under Federal Section 8 (HUD) guidelines. In such public housing, rents are determined by HUD on a yearly basis, and anyone who earns less than 80 percent of the median income qualifies for the program, with priority going to the poorest applicants, who get government vouchers to help pay their rent. Some landlords and developers find the Section 8 option attractive since they don't have to worry about non-payment and sometimes government-paid rent exceeds market rent. Many communities, on the other hand, worry that such housing may bring with it stereotypically urban problems of crime, poverty, and property deterioration. For an overview of the problems with Section 8 Housing, see www.city-journal.org/html/10_4_lets_end_housing.html.

Other Options
Among other downsizing options are shared housing, in which two or more unrelated people live together in a single-family home or apartment. For example, a senior who wishes to continue to live in his or her home, could rent out extra space to another senior or someone who provides some home care services, possibly charging a lower-than-market rent in return for such services. Still other options include:

ECHO Housing (Elder Cottage Housing Opportunity). These are small, self-contained portable housing units that can be placed on the property of single family homes and hooked up to the property's electric and sewerage. Zoning must allow for such arrangements.

Discounted housing. If asked, some established private apartment complexes in Dutchess County will offer senior citizen discounts on rent.

Foster Family Care Programs. This less common, home-centered alternative to residential care is geared for elderly or disabled adults who do not need total care, but require 24-hour supervision. Extended Family Programs match appropriate clients with well-screened families who share their homes and provide personal care. Private funding, social security, supplemental security income (SSI), or Medicaid, may pay for such services. The Lutheran Care Center in Poughkeepsie manages one such program. For more information visit their web site at www.wartburg.org or call 845-486-9494. The Fishkill Health Center (www.fishkillhealth.com, or 845-831-0165) manages another Foster Family Care Program in Fishkill.

Co-housing is a type of collaborative housing in which residents actively participate in the design and operation of their own neighborhoods. Co-housings (called also "intentional communities") are intergenerational, and combine the advantages of private homes with the benefits of more sustainable living, including sharing common facilities (see www.cohousing.org). Ecovillage in Ithaca is a model co-housing community (see www.ecovillage.ithaca.ny.us).

There are several co-housing communities in New York, including one called Cantine Island in Saugerties. Others are being formed in the Mid-Hudson Valley. Ilyse Simon is involved with a co-housing project in Ulster County that purchased land about a year ago and has decided on an architect for the project. People of all ages have shown interest, and according to Simon, many of them are seniors. For more information about the new co-housing project in Ulster or to attend their monthly meetings contact ilysefood@yahoo.com, or seanandsheila@earthlink.net or call 845-943-9005.

For a complete run-down of senior housing options, including nursing homes in the area, contact Dutchess County Office for the Aging/CASA at 845-486-2575 or 845-486-2555.