Financial FAQ

Making a deposit at Searstone is a smart investment for your future—and a low risk one too. Our Wait List Fee is $5,300 and $5,000 of that is refundable. Searstone’s Wait List is pretty rules-free, allowing Wait List Members to turn down offerings with no penalty if they’re not ready.

Searstone operates as a not-for-profit continuing care retirement community, ensuring that all financial decisions prioritize the best interests of our residents. Our successful budget management since opening has enabled us to provide high-quality services while keeping overall cost increases in check. Investing in Searstone means investing in your future.

There are several components of the costs at Searstone that can be considered tax advantages. The Life Care fee component of the Entrance Fee may be considered a pre-paid medical expense, and the full amount of the Life Care Entrance Fee may be deducted the year a resident pays the fee to Searstone. Each year, a portion of the Monthly Service Fee may be considered a pre-paid medical expense. Our team provides an annual letter outlining the IRS code and the percentage the actuaries provide for the deduction. Because residents don’t own the property at Searstone they are no longer responsible for property taxes.

Many residents fund the entrance fee with proceeds from the sale of their home. This model of entrance fee allows residents to enjoy the benefits of retirement community living with the added assurance of the full continuum of care provided at predictable costs. Residents can rest easy knowing that a portion, or all, of their entrance fee will be returned to them, their children or their estate in the future.

For the most part, the monthly fee is roughly equal to or less than the monthly cost of living residents paid in their homes before moving to Searstone. This is especially true when considering all the services, amenities and upkeep expenses. Life at Searstone means saying goodbye to homeowner’s insurance, utility bills, property taxes, home maintenance, yardwork and all the headaches of home ownership and saying hello to the comforts and convenience of complete peace-of-mind living.

Your long-term care policy will work together with your care at Searstone and pay earned benefits directly to you as the policyholder in most instances. A Sales Counselor can help you better understand your policy and what benefits you would be eligible for.

While both for-profit and not-for-profit CCRCs extend and provide the same services and care, from retirement living to personal and assisted care, the goals and the ways in which they utilize that income you pay for your care and services may differ.

Revenue and donations earned by not-for-profits, like Searstone, go towards maintaining and operating their communities for the well-being of their residents instead of providing a financial return to corporate stakeholders and investors, such as for-profit CCRCs. Adhering to mission-based culture or faith-based groups is a plus to many seniors and find it a better value when moving into a CCRC. But this doesn’t mean that for-profit CCRCs do not show that same compassion or investment to the community and residents, because they do, considering there are many successful for-profit organizations across the country.

At the end of the day, it is important to do detailed research to compare all your options and see which is best for you. Take into consideration the location, pricing, services and amenities that each community has to offer that will fit all your needs and more before you take that next chapter of your life. In the end, the priority is you.