Misconceptions of the Senior Living Advisor Industry

Often there are misconceptions regarding what we do as Senior Living Advisors in the marketplace. Recently, at an educational event for seniors, a gentleman said, “ When you get paid by the senior living communities, my rate goes up because they have to pay you!” I told him in no way is this true. Communities have a line item in their budget for services like ours. They expect to pay us, and are prepared for that without affecting the resident’s monthly rate in any way. As a matter of fact, as Senior Living Advisors, we are able to negotiate rates for our clients. Often, a family may favor one community over another for various reasons, but the rate may be just out of their comfort zone. In this case, we can work with the senior living community to compromise on a rate that works well for the family. The more we negotiate, the less we make. So, in no way does the senior become impacted financially from the use of a Senior Living Advisor. On the contrary, as we will find a way to make it work financially for our clients.Another misconception, is that we will only show senior living communities that we have contracts with. Again, this is not true. We do have contracts with around 230+ communities in the Chicagoland area, city and suburbs. I would say we work with over 90% of all senior living communities in Chicagoland as a whole. But, there are some we do not work with. Sometimes communities might feel they have enough contracts with referral services, or if they are full, they may not feel they need our assistance. However, just because we don’t have a contract with a particular community, does not mean we will not suggest our client take a look at it. If it’s an obvious possible fit for the client in location, budget, and level of care, than suggesting anything other than them seeing it would be unethical. We would be doing a disservice to the client who is hoping to find the best possible living arrangement for the next phase in life.Our goal at Senior Living Experts, is to provide the best senior living options to our clients based on their specific needs and desires. We are here to protect our clients finances by working to get them the best monthly rate possible, as well as suggesting they go see all communities that would fit their wish list. Regardless, if we personally benefit or not, is placed on the back burner. Because if we don’t provide our service with integrity, than none of us will gain anything of real importance and value throughout the process.