Choosing Home Care or Senior Living: Free Checklist
Questions to ask any home care agency, home health agency or senior living community, and free places to check before you decide.
Choosing care for a parent or for yourself usually happens fast, often after a fall or a hospital stay. The questions below work for any home care agency, home health agency or senior living community. The checklist is shown here and is also available as a one-page PDF you can print and take to your visits.
Download the one-page PDF checklist
First, know which type of care you're comparing
| Type of care | What it is and who pays |
|---|---|
| Non-medical home care | help with bathing, dressing, meals and companionship. Medicare does not pay for this kind of custodial care; families usually pay privately or through long-term care insurance, VA benefits, or Medi-Cal (IHSS) if eligible. |
| Home health | skilled nursing or therapy ordered by a doctor. Medicare covers it when a doctor certifies you are homebound and need intermittent skilled care, and you use a Medicare-certified agency. |
| Assisted living and memory care | housing with 24-hour non-medical care and supervision (licensed in California as RCFEs). Mostly private pay. |
Questions to ask any provider
Licensing and safety
Cost and terms
Care plan and communication
Free places to check and compare
1. State licensing lookups
| What to check | Where |
|---|---|
| Home care agencies and assisted living (CA Dept. of Social Services) | ccld.dss.ca.gov/carefacilitysearch |
| Home care aides (Home Care Aide Registry) | ccld.dss.ca.gov/hcsregistry |
| Home health and hospice (CA Dept. of Public Health, Cal Health Find) | search “Cal Health Find” at cdph.ca.gov |
| Medicare-certified home health ratings | medicare.gov/care-compare |
2. Your local Area Agency on Aging
| Where you live | Who to call |
|---|---|
| California Aging & Adult Information Line (routes to your county) | 1-800-510-2020 |
| Outside California: Eldercare Locator | 1-800-677-1116 · eldercare.acl.gov |
3. Carexroads
Free for families: an online care-navigation platform to compare local home care, home health and senior living providers. The family chooses.
My notes
Download the one-page PDF checklist
General education only, not legal, financial or medical advice. No single source is complete, so check more than one. Carexroads is free for families and is funded by membership fees from provider members; it charges no fee per referral. RLF receives no payment from Carexroads and does not recommend any provider.
Estimate what care could cost
Free guide. No login, nothing sold, built by a 501(c)(3).
How much does long-term care cost?Related guides
Does Medicare Pay for a Nursing Home?What Medicare covers and what it does not.How to Pay for Long-Term CareThe main ways families fund care.When to Enroll in MedicareThe seven-month window and the permanent late penalty.The Retirement Literacy Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit. This guide is general financial education, not individualized investment, tax, or insurance advice. Tax rules change and depend on your personal situation. Consider speaking with a licensed professional before making decisions.
Hans Goldstein, EA
Founder & Executive Director · Retirement Literacy Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit
Admitted to practice before the IRS
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