97 assisted living communities near San Francisco

What is Assisted Living?

Assisted living communities, or residential care facilities, are communities for seniors, and they provide 24-hour nonmedical care. These communities range in size from single family homes to large complexes, and the price can vary drastically depending on the accommodations, care and amenities provided. The level of basic care, however, is similar across all assisted living communities and generally includes assistance with the activities of daily living (ADLs) such as dressing, self-care and medication administration. Seniors in assisted living facilities are usually provided with housekeeping, meal services and wellness programs, as well.

Services Available in Assisted Living Communities in San Francisco

Assisted living communities in San Francisco are regulated by the state of California, which requires facilities to follow specific rules regarding services provided and the health of residents they admit to their community. According to California law, all assisted living communities must provide residents with two types of services in addition to room and board:

1. Basic services: This includes personal care, planned activities, observation and supervision, and assistance with arranging outside care, including medical and dental services.
2. Care and supervision: This includes assistance with ADLs, such as dressing, personal hygiene, and self-administered medication, and meal and special diet supervision.

Assisted living communities must also provide residents with an assessment of basic functional capacity when they apply to become a resident. This assessment includes an appraisal of the potential resident's ability to perform ADLs, medication requirements and special dietary restrictions. When changes occur in a patient's overall health, medication or diet, staff must note these changes and reevaluate the patient's residency.

Getting Ready to Move to Assisted Living in San Francisco

When you or someone you love is ready to make the move to an assisted living facility in San Francisco, it's important to find a community that feels like home. Different amenities are available at different properties and finding a community with activities and services available that suit your needs and interests will help you or your loved one feel comfortable in their new home. Touring properties and getting to know staff and residents is one way to make sure the facilities you're interested in are going to provide a safe and pleasant environment.

To assist in your selection process and setting up tours, we provide a Seniorly Guide at no cost to you.  This local expert knows all the communities in San Francisco and the Bay Area and is available at no cost to all families to help them more confidently find the right assisted living facility. They set up tours, take families on tours, and provide the details on costs and services at each facility, as well as connect families with local services to prepare for the move.

Costs Associated with Assisted Living in San Francisco

According to the Genworth Cost of Care survey, the average monthly cost for assisted living in San Francisco is $4,300. The national average is a little lower at only $3,750. This expense may seem high for some, but for eligible low-income seniors, Medicaid may be available to help with the cost through the Assisted Living Waiver program.

It's also important to remember that these costs include housing, meals and other amenities. While comparing exact costs can be tricky, it’s worth adding up the cost of renting or the mortgage and including in-home care costs, taxes, food, and utilities to arrive at a rough figure for comparison.

There’s a lot more to assisted living, as well. Because social activities in and out of the community are often included, your aging parent or loved one can easily get to them, and then transportation is often provided. This encourages social mixing and an enhanced quality of life that may not be available through in-home care. However, there are more factors to consider, so read through and learn more about the costs of assisted living.

When you work with our Seniorly Guides to find a home to love, this is always a free service for families. The Seniorly Guide is compensated directly from the community you eventually select in San Francisco.

Assisted Living vs. Other Types of Senior Care

Before moving to an assisted living or residential care facility in San Francisco, it's important to understand all of the long-term senior care options that are available to be certain that assisted living is the right choice for you or your loved one.

In-home care is designed for seniors who remain fairly independent. They are able to perform their ADLs without assistance in most cases, but they still require some additional support with basic household chores or some personal or medical care. In-home care allows seniors to continue living in their homes.

Independent living communities are those geared toward seniors who want to live among their peers and maintain a certain level of independence without the burden of home maintenance and upkeep.

Nursing homes provide round-the-clock medical care for seniors who are unable to continue caring for themselves. Nursing homes will offer all the services that assisted living provides, with the addition of full-time nursing staff and medical care.

Continuing care retirement communities encompass several levels of care within one facility. These communities provide an ideal home for residents who usually enter at the independent level, making a financial investment to ensure they have all other care levels available as their needs determine with aging.

Helpful Apps and Websites for Assisted Living in San Francisco

If you or your loved one are planning to move into an assisted living or residential care facility, it's a good idea to consider other ways to make day-to-day tasks easier. Enlisting services that help with daily chores, transportation or delivery of goods will make the transition to an assisted living community easier. San Francisco has plenty of these services available, here are just a few apps and websites that may be of use:

• Lyft is a rideshare app that will pair you with drivers in your area and allows you to book your ride on their website or via Android or iPhone app.
• CVS/Pharmacy Delivery allows you to order your prescriptions online and will deliver them to your door, saving you a trip to the pharmacy.
• My Doctor Medical Group offers house calls and can perform everything from a check up to an ultrasound or administration of intravenous fluids in the home.
• Volunteer Visitors is a service for seniors who are craving a bit more companionship. Seniors will be matched with a volunteer who will visit weekly to chat, play games or provide basic assistance with minor tasks when needed.

Resources for Caregivers in San Francisco

Providing care for your loved one can be both a rewarding and demanding endeavor. Fortunately, support is always available. Here are just a few of the many resources available to caregivers in the San Francisco area.

• San Francisco Department of Aging and Adult Services coordinates services to seniors, adults with disabilities, and their families to maximize self-sufficiency, safety, health, and independence so that they can remain living in the community for as long as possible and maintain the highest quality of life.
• San Francisco Senior Center is the oldest nonprofit senior center in the nation, founded in 1947. They serve nearly 2,000 people of diverse backgrounds and cultures each year at two locations, Aquatic Park Center and Downtown Center SFSC offers a variety of services from daily, low-cost, nutritious lunches and comprehensive social services to healthy living programs and continuing education. SFSC encourages socialization, independence and living well.  
• San Francisco Program of All-Inclusive Elderly Care (PACE) - OnLok  is a comprehensive health plan that provides long-term care for eligible seniors living in San Francisco, Fremont, Newark, Union City or Santa Clara County (not including Gilroy, Morgan Hill or San Martin). The program offers full medical care and support services with the goal of helping seniors live at home and in the community for as long as possible.
• Bay Area Caregiver Resource Center provides free and low-cost services to caregivers. These services include support groups, workshops and information for caregivers on providing care to their loved ones and themselves.
• Family Caregiver Support Program is a service provided by the City and County of San Francisco that offers respite care to give caregivers a break, as well as referrals to available services, counseling and access to legal services.
• The U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs Caregiving Support Program provides support and mentoring to those caring for aging veterans.
• California Department of Social Services, Community Care Licensing Division's (CCL) mission is to promote the health, safety, and quality of life of each person in community care through the administration of an effective collaborative regulatory enforcement system. Today the CCL Program remains a Division within CDSS. However the nature of community care has changed significantly and now includes care for persons whose needs require the management of severe behavior adjustment problems, serious mental disorders and significant medical needs. In order to give emphasis to the different populations served the CCL Program is now governed by three separate licensing Acts and a fourth statute that was enacted in 1990.
• California Quality Care (CalQualityCare.org) is free, easy-to-use and features information on nursing homes, and other assisted living facilities, along with tips and checklists about how to choose a health care provider, questions to ask, how to pay for care, and what to do if something goes wrong. Better information enables smarter choices when making long-term care decisions decisions. Publicly available information about health care quality — and consumers eager to consider quality in their long-term care decisions — will improve the health care system.

Government Resources for Seniors in San Francisco

There are many resources available that provide support and additional care to aging citizens in San Francisco and the bay area.  Be sure to do your own online search, but start with these highly reputable and useful organizations.

• San Francisco Program of All-Inclusive Elderly Care (PACE) is a comprehensive health plan that provides long-term healthcare to eligible seniors in San Francisco. The program offers full medical care and support with the goal of helping seniors remain at home as long as possible.
• The San Francisco Department of Aging and Adult Services (DAAS), provides seniors and their loved ones with assistance in arranging care and services in order to maximize self-sufficiency, safety, health and independence to help seniors remain in their communities as long as possible and continue to maintain a high quality of life.
• San Francisco Senior Center is the oldest non-profit senior center in the US. It offers a variety of programs and services including low-cost nutritious meals, healthy living programs, social services and continuing educations.
• SF Connected provides free tutoring to help seniors and adults with disabilities learn computer skills.
• Institute on Aging works to preserve the dignity of seniors and persons with disabilities in San Francisco by bringing together pioneering experts, seasoned champions and hands-on caregivers to make aging better.
• California Department of Social Services, Community Care Licensing Division (CCL) promotes the health, safety, and quality of life of seniors in community care.

San Francisco Demographics

San Francisco is home to just over 880,000 residents, of which 14 percent are over the age of 65. The population is nearly 50 percent Caucasian, with approximately 35 percent of citizens being of Asian descent and approximately 15 percent being Hispanic or Latino.

The city's land area covers an approximate 7x7 mile square, however, the bay is within San Francisco's city limits as well, which makes the total area slightly larger.

San Francisco Weather

Mark Twain was quoted as saying "The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco." This couldn't be truer when compared with the weather throughout the rest of California. San Francisco is in the direct path of cool ocean currents that contribute to a considerably cool temperature year round.

Within the city there are many microclimates, meaning from neighborhood to neighborhood weather can vary in temperature and precipitation. This is due to the topography of the city and the proximity some neighborhoods have to the Pacific Ocean.

Transportation In and Around San Francisco

San Francisco is served by the San Francisco International Airport, which is located in the southeast quadrant of the city along the coastline.  In the east, you will find the Oakland Airport, an excellent alternative since both provide easy transportation into the city proper.

Getting around the city without a vehicle is surprisingly simple and cost-efficient and plenty of options for navigating the city are available.

• BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) provides fast transportation from the San Francisco International Airport to downtown San Francisco and East Bay without the inconveniences of traffic congestion. Trains run from early morning to midnight every day of the week with three to four trains departing each hour.
• Ride-share apps such as Lyft and Uber are very popular in San Francisco and the Bay Area and provide a more convenient alternative to public transportation.
• SFMTA (San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency) is San Francisco's public transit system. The service includes buses, light rail metro trains, historic streetcars and cable cars that provide access to every part of the city at a low cost.
• CalTrans provides information about traveling around California with real-time traffic cameras, maps and trip planning tools.

Fun Facts About San Francisco

In the 1800s, the city used to be the territory of Mexico until the end of the Mexican-American war, when Mexico ceded the city to the United States. The city is the home of the gold rush, which contributed to its development and population growth.

A common tourist spot, many visitors pass through San Francisco each year to take in its rolling hills and historical landmarks such as Alcatraz, the Golden Gate Bridge and the popular hippie spot of the 1960s, Haight-Ashbury. In fact, in 2016 a record-breaking 25.1 million visitors passed through San Francisco.

More Facts About San Francisco

• San Francisco is home to the largest China Town outside of Asia, and it's the oldest China Town in North America. The local Asian Art Museum is home to pieces that date as early as 221 B.C.
• The Chronical Wine Competition takes place in San Francisco every February. It's the largest competition of American wines in the world.
• San Francisco is home to more than 50 film festivals every year.
• The Bay Area experiences hundreds of earthquakes each year, but most are so small they aren't felt by residents.
• San Francisco is one of the most densely populated cities in the United States.