Pennsylvania, Ohio and California are the three most popular states for continuing care retirement communities, also known as life plan communities, according to Ziegler.

Of the 1,954 CCRCs nationally, Pennsylvania has 197, Ohio has 150 and California has 133, according to Lisa McCracken, the specialty investment bank’s senior vice president, senior living research and development, writing in the company’s newsletter, Senior Living Finance Z-News. Factors affecting prominence of the communities, she said, include state population, familiarity with the concept and state regulatory environments.

Ziegler defines CCRCs as communities with, at minimum, independent living and skilled nursing components, although some also may offer assisted living and memory care.

Some additional characteristics of the communities:

  • More than 79% are not-for-profits.
  • Increasingly they are sponsored or owned by multisite organizations, a trend that Ziegler expects to continue.
  • The average size is 288 units, although communities range from having fewer than 100 units to more than 750.

Consumer demand for CCRC services and lifestyle will continue, Ziegler believes, and communities are undertaking renovations to remain competitive. “A majority of life plan community organizations continue to reinvest in their existing campuses and look to enhance offerings, whether it would be specialized memory support services or additional common areas that offer state-of-the-art wellness centers,” McCracken noted.