Senior Living Community Satisfaction Stabilizes as Staffing and Activities Improve, J.D. Power Finds

Life Care Services Ranks Highest in Both Study Segments

Senior living communities have managed to maintain steady levels of resident and family member satisfaction despite steadily rising costs, which as of the third quarter of 2023 have increased 5.4%¹ on an annual basis industry-wide. According to the J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Senior Living Satisfaction Study,^SM released today, overall satisfaction is largely flat year over year among residents for independent senior living providers and among family members/decision-makers for assisted living/memory care providers.

“Coming out of the pandemic, the major challenge for senior living providers was staffing,” said Andrea Stokes, hospitality and senior living practice lead at J.D. Power. “The good news is that we’re no longer seeing declines in resident satisfaction linked directly to staff reductions or facilities management. However, the new challenge is residents’ perception of value for money paid for independent living. Rents continue to rise considerably, and lower ratings provided for prices paid for services received are creating a drag on resident satisfaction.”

Following are some key findings of the 2023 study:

• Staffing and community scores rise in assisted living communities: The average satisfaction among the families/decision-makers of assisted living/memory care community residents is 837 (on a 1,000-point scale), up 8 points from a year ago. The increase is driven by improvements in satisfaction with community staff (+11 points) and with resident activities (+9).

• Cost pressures limit improvement in independent living communities: Satisfaction with value—or price paid for services received—among independent living residents is 604, 15 points lower than a year ago.

• Accessibility of senior management in assisted living/memory care: When family members/decision-makers of assisted living/memory care residents perceive it is “very easy” to contact the community’s executive director, overall satisfaction scores increase 118 points on average. Yet less than half (48%) of family members/decision-makers say this is the case at their loved one’s community.

• Activities offerings play key role: In both independent living and assisted living/memory care, satisfaction with resident activities has increased year over year, likely due to providers continuing to reinstate many in-person group activities.

Study Rankings

Life Care Services ranks highest in independent living resident overall satisfaction for a fifth consecutive year, with a score of 827. Five Star Senior Living (744) ranks second.

Life Care Services ranks highest in family member/decision-maker overall satisfaction with assisted living/memory care providers, with a score of 869. Atria Senior Living (855) ranks second and Frontier Management (846) ranks third.

See the rank chart for each segment at http://www.jdpower.com/pr-id/2023161.

The U.S. Senior Living Satisfaction Study measures resident satisfaction with the nation’s largest providers² of independent living for seniors and family member/decision-maker satisfaction with the largest providers of assisted living/memory care service providers. Overall satisfaction is measured across six factors of the senior living experience (listed in alphabetical order): community buildings and grounds; community staff; dining; price paid for services received; resident activities; and resident apartment/living unit. The 2023 study is based on 3,838 responses from residents living in an independent community—or from family members/decision-makers on behalf of residents of assisted living/memory care communities—within the previous three years. Reponses were collected from July through August 2023.

For more information about the U.S. Senior Living Satisfaction Study, visit http://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/senior-living-study.

About J.D. Power

J.D. Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, J.D. Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world's leading businesses across major industries rely on J.D. Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

J.D. Power has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The J.D. Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

About J.D. Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

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² Independent living providers included in the study must have had at least 7,000 living units and could not solely operate entrance-deposit communities. Included assisted living/memory care providers must have had at least 10,000 assisted living and/or memory care living units. Living unit data based on the Argentum Largest Providers Report, 2022.

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