When David Picheny moved into Kaplan Estates, a Peabody assisted living community, the only help he needed was with putting on his compression stockings. But since his October 2024 arrival, “I have way more issues than I had before,” says the 78-year-old, who was widowed in September. “I’m now on dialysis. The help here is just unbelievable – and that’s what really counts.”

Picheny chose Kaplan Estates in no small part because the Chelsea Jewish Lifecare community, an affiliate of Legacy Lifecare, promised he could age in place. Trajectories like his explain the popularity of so-called continuing care retirement communities – known as CCRCs – which offer a range of medical and social services that accommodate the changing needs of residents, from help with laundry, housekeeping and meals to more hands-on medical and social services, including memory care for dementia.

“A lot of people are looking for a campus they don’t have to move from,” explained Debbie Weisberg, a spokesperson Chelsea Jewish Lifecare, a nonprofit organization that operates several Boston-area campuses. “Ideally, they can stay in their independent or assisted living unit, but they want to know those options are there if they need extra help at some point. We did a survey a few years ago, and nine times out of 10, it’s the [adult] kids, the families, who say, ‘We want that peace of mind.’”

Indeed, Picheny chose Kaplan Estates partly for its location near one of his adult daughters, who lives in Manchester-by-the-Sea. He and his wife had retired to the Florida Keys, but “there was no way I was going to live by myself,” he said.

He and his daughter looked for a community with significant populations of both men – women, who live longer, tend to predominate – and Jews, hoping Picheny would have things in common with his new neighbors. Happily, he does. “They have a Friday night service here, which is really nice,” said Picheny. “It’s run by people from one of the local temples, and I can say Kaddish for my wife.”

Though he still struggles with losing a partner of 54 years, Picheny said the communal atmosphere has helped ease his loneliness. And he’s happy with the food: “If you go to the dining room to eat, you can tell them what you want. You get to socialize with people, and find out about all the activities. “

Gina Fernandez, the sales director for Brooksby Village, another Peabody community, said that social atmosphere is a strong selling point for assisted living generally – and CCRCs in particular, as they tend to have more people and activities. “Everyone wants to know that they’re going to be able to meet and connect with people like themselves when they make this move, said Fernandez. “A larger community offers more opportunities to meet a variety of different types of people with different interests, opinions and backgrounds.”

Fernandez said that Brooksby Village, which is managed by Erickson Senior Living, is the area’s largest CCRC, with nearly 2,000 residents. With community costs shared by so many, Brooksby is known for its relative affordability: Units start at $2,400 monthly for a studio apartment, with a $103,000 initial buy-in that is 90 percent refundable when the unit vacates.

David Calnan, the senior retirement counselor at Orchard Cove, agreed that social life has become more important to the seniors who choose CCRCs like his Canton community. It is one of seven Boston-area retirement complexes operated by Hebrew SeniorLife, New England’s largest nonprofit operator of senior communities and the only one affiliated with Harvard Medical School.

“Especially after Covid, when people found themselves at home alone for months at a time, having that built-in social component is huge. And people value that even more today than they did a few years ago,” Calnan said. “One of the very big reasons people move to a place like Orchard Cove is for the support of their fellow residents, the companionship.”

Calnan noted that his community specializes in what the industry calls “solo agers”– people like David Picheny, who arrive on their own to begin a

new chapter of life in assisted living. For that demographic, Orchard Cove has intergenerational programs, communal gardens and other offerings meant to foster community among those without family on campus.

But with 30-plus years of experience handling a variety of situations, Calnan said Orchard Cove also attracts couples with varying care needs. “A lot of CCRCs will require that both parties in a couple be able to be fully independent. And we look at it a little bit differently,” said Calnan. “We look at a couple as being able to maintain their independence as a couple. So one is maybe more dependent on the other, but they’re still able to live independently.”

As is typical at CCRCs, Orchard Cove offers independent living apartments (227, all occupied); assisted living (which Hebrew SeniorLife calls “enhanced units”; there are 28); a skilled nursing facility; and memory care. Initial buy-ins, which are 90 percent refundable, start at $428,000 for independent living units, with monthly fees from $4,715.

Even within the same region, costs and amenities can vary widely at different CCRCs, but the underlying premise is “what I refer to as one-stop shopping,” said Calnan. “Once you’ve made the decision to choose a continuing care retirement community, pretty much every eventuality can be addressed.”

At Chelsea Jewish Lifecare’s Kaplan Estates, traditional assisted living options start at $6,250 a month, while memory care, which is far more medically and socially intensive, begins at $8,290 monthly; there are no upfront buy-ins.

Spokesperson Debbie Weisberg said the CCRC model is so appealing that popular communities often have lengthy wait lists. “We encourage people, when you tour and you like it, to just put your name on the waiting list,” she advised. “There’s no money involved; you have nothing to lose, and it’s peace of mind.”

Memory care in particular is seeing rising demand, as more people live to older ages: Weisberg noted that 100th birthday celebrations are less rare at Chelsea than they used to be.

Many older residents, like Picheny, tried out Sun Belt living for their early retirement. “And then when people get older, a lot of them want to go back to where they grew up – to that area where they have roots, family and relationships,” she observed. “Once they’re here, if they can do everything they need on the same campus, that’s a huge draw.”