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It is true that number of elderly in our community is growing, yet a very small percentage of them could receive care from the proposed Isakson Living CCRC due to affordability issues. The entrance fee based on information provided by Isakson Living is from $200,000 to more than $500,000. Note that the entrance fee is only 90%, 50% or 0% refundable, unlike the cost of buying and then selling a house, where people generally receive more money than what they paid for it. Monthly fees, which include rent and a stipend for food, range from $3,000 to $5,000 for couples, and that amount can increase with inflation. Medical care is not included.
As an example, for an average married couple, the entrance fee would be $350,000 and it would cost $48,000 a year for monthly fees, but those costs don’t include health care, a la carte fees or other items in a typical budget. Usually 25% of a budget is spent on housing, so that would mean the average retired couple would need around $192,000 per year to retire comfortably in this CCRC; over 10 years it would cost on average about $2,227,000 including the entrance fee. Most retirees in Cobb County do not have that amount of income, and nationally the average median household income for seniors is $35,107 per year. In other words this CCRC would not be an affordable option for the overwhelming majority of seniors.