Currently, A Place for Mom partners with more than 160 independent living communities in Massachusetts.
The median monthly cost of independent living in Massachusetts is about $3,000.
Overall, the community is very nice. I especially enjoy walking the grounds to see the nature we are surrounded by. I love reading large print books from the library. We recently found out that we will be...
Everyone is helpful. The activities are varied, something for everyone. You can participate or not. The food is ok and varied. They put leftovers in a fridge and you can take anything from there. There is...
The Atria is AMAZING! My mom has been here 5 months, and she loves it. I toured 9 places before mom & I chose Atria. Every staff member is warm, helpful & has the patience of a saint. They work together as...
I can’t say enough great things about Allerton in Hingham. My mom moved in after my father passed away almost 2 yrs ago and it was the best decision we could have possibly made. We didn’t realize the severe...
My mother was a resident at Penniman for about two years. She was in Assisted Living for a year and a half and Memory Care for about four months. The care she received at Penniman Hill was outstanding. The...
The Atria is AMAZING! My mom has been here 5 months, and she loves it. I toured 9 places before mom & I chose Atria. Every staff member is warm, helpful & has the patience of a saint. They work together as...
Colonial Gardens was absolutely wonderful, everything about it! The staff were very accommodating, caring and willing to assist and help...
Everyone is helpful. The activities are varied, something for everyone. You can participate or not. The food is ok and varied. They put leftovers in a fridge and you can take anything from there. There is...
The Atria is AMAZING! My mom has been here 5 months, and she loves it. I toured 9 places before mom & I chose Atria. Every staff member is warm, helpful & has the patience of a saint. They work together as...
All 5s!! It's a wonderful community! What I like the most about The Willows is that it is welcoming and friendly people, with many activities. I would absolutely recommend this community to other families!
I like it. It is expensive, but worth it if you have the money. It is assisted living and NOT nursing -- so good if the senior is still healthy and active, but could be bad if the senior has a lot of...
My loved one was a resident at Dodge Park Rest Home and the overall experience was great for her at this facility. My experience with Dodge Park Rest Home was that they were a very reliable and honest...
My stepdad was in the memory unit. The staff were very attentive to him a made his stay more comfortable. I also worked with a hospice patient in the memory unit. I was so impressed with the care he...
This is a very alive place. It is easy living: no food to buy or cook, no responsibilities about a house or lawn, no property taxes. One can be active in the community, or local senior center or there are...
I have lived at the Holiday since March of 2023. Moving from a larger facility to a homelike environment has been a welcome change. Not one for large gatherings, I would recommend the Holiday for a feel at...
Independent living facilities in Massachusetts don’t provide any care services to seniors, therefore they don’t need to be licensed by a state facility. Instead, they are treated as standard rentals and must follow Massachusetts rental laws outlined by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC). These communities typically have a minimum age requirement, which is typically 62 years.
In Massachusetts, if an independent living facility shares a campus with an assisted living or memory care facility, then those senior care units must be licensed. To learn more about the senior care licensing process and facility regulations, check out the Massachusetts assisted living regulations and memory care regulations.
Massachusetts doesn’t offer inspection reports online, but you can request a copy of an assisted living or memory care facility by contacting the Executive Office of Elder Affairs at information.resources@mass.gov or fax them at 617-727-9368.
Like any Massachusetts rental, stand-alone independent living facilities must offer senior residents a safe and habitable living environment. Independent living rentals in Massachusetts must adhere to the following requirements:[01]
If an independent living landlord in Massachusetts fails to provide a safe and habitable environment, tenants have rights to remedies available to them. Some of the most important tenant rights to note include:[01]
Before withholding rent or proceeding with repairs, tenants should get legal advice because it could breach their lease agreement. The Mass.gov website offers several legal services to help tenants in such situations.
If you would like to report a complaint or need help resolving a housing dispute, you can contact the Attorney General’s Consumer Hotline at 617-727-8400.
Fair housing laws prohibit discrimination against individuals with disabilities and require landlords to offer reasonable accommodations and modifications.[02] Therefore, an independent living facility in Massachusetts cannot refuse to rent due to a senior’s disability.
A reasonable accommodation is a change to policy that will allow a person with a disability to use common areas. Some examples that could help an individual with a disability include:[02]
A reasonable modification is a structural change that is made to existing premises. Some modifications that could help a senior with a disability include:[02]
Independent living facility providers must cover the cost of accommodations or modifications as long as they don’t result in an undue financial and administrative burden, or a fundamental alteration.[02]
Massachusetts Department of Public Health
250 Washington St.
Boston, MA 02108
Phone: 617-624-6000
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The state of Massachusetts doesn’t offer rental inspection reports online. To learn about an independent living facility’s most recent inspection and/or violations, you can reach out to the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) at housing.help@mass.gov or call 617-573-1100.
Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities. (2024). Tenant rights. Mass.gov.
Massachusetts Office on Disability. (2024, February 1). Disability rights in housing. Mass.gov.
The information contained on this page is for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute medical, legal or financial advice or create a professional relationship between A Place for Mom and the reader. Always seek the advice of your health care provider, attorney or financial advisor with respect to any particular matter, and do not act or refrain from acting on the basis of anything you have read on this site. Links to third-party websites are only for the convenience of the reader; A Place for Mom does not endorse the contents of the third-party sites.
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