Unity House Inc

Independent living is a general name for any housing arrangement designed exclusively for seniors. A nursing home, convalescent home, Skilled Nursing Unit, care home or rest home provides a specific type of care for its residents. Retirement villages and retirement communities, unlike retirement homes, offer separate and autonomous homes for residents. Assisted living emerged in the 1990s as an eldercare alternative on the continuum of care for seniors for whom Independent living is no longer appropriate but who do not need the 24-hour medical care provided by a nursing home. A place in a retirement home can be paid for on a rental basis, like an apartment, or can be bought in perpetuity on the same basis as a condominium. The housing is friendlier to older adults, more compact, with easier navigation and assistance in outside maintenance. Assisted living comes by many names, such as residential care, board and care, or group homes.