Aging in place research and data

Fall data. The figures reported by NCOA from CDC sources: roughly 14 million falls a year among adults 65 and older, about 3 million emergency department visits and 38,000 deaths in 2021, non-fatal fall costs of about $80 billion annually based on 2020 data with a projection of $101 billion by 2030, an average of about $18,658 per inpatient hospital visit and $1,112 per emergency department visit, and payment split roughly 67% Medicare, 4% Medicaid and 29% private or out of pocket. The most decision-relevant single fact is that falling once roughly doubles the risk of falling again.

Care cost benchmarks. The 2025 CareScout Cost of Care Survey — the successor to the long-running Genworth survey — reports national medians of $35 an hour for a non-medical in-home caregiver ($80,080 a year at 44 hours a week, up 3%), $95 a day for adult day health care (down 5%), $6,200 a month for assisted living ($74,400 a year, up 5%), $315 a day for a semi-private nursing home room ($114,975 a year, up 2%), and $355 a day for a private room ($129,575 a year, up 1%). These are national medians and local variation is large, so treat them as the frame, not the forecast.

Modification cost data. This Old House's 2026 figures: bathroom remodels at $6,456–$24,715 with an average of $15,586, walk-in shower installations at $4,000–$20,000 averaging about $12,000, and accessibility retrofits generally starting around $10,000 over four to eight days. Fixr's walk-in shower data puts a curbless configuration around $6,000 and permit costs at $100–$500. NCOA puts straight stair lifts at $2,500–$5,000 installed and curved at $8,000–$12,000. Medical alert monitoring runs $20–$60 a month with fall detection adding $10–$11.

How to read all of this. National averages hide the variables that will actually determine your number: local labor rates, what's behind your walls, and whether the house cooperates. What the data is genuinely good for is sanity-checking a bid, understanding the scale of the alternative, and making the case to a reluctant parent or a skeptical sibling that this spending is proportionate to the risk. It is not good for budgeting a specific project, and nobody should treat a national median as a quote.

How to choose

Use fall data to set priority, not to frighten anyone

The useful message is that falls are common and substantially addressable, and that a first fall predicts a second. Fear-based framing makes older adults conceal falls, which is the opposite of what you need.

Compare against local care costs, not national medians

The CareScout figures are national. Assisted living in your metro may differ substantially. Call two local communities and ask their monthly rate before you use any number in a family decision.

Check bids against published ranges, then ask why

A bid far below the range usually means scope is missing. Far above usually means hidden conditions or a premium spec. Either way the answer is a question, not an assumption.

Watch for out-of-date figures in sales material

Care costs moved meaningfully in the 2025 survey — assisted living up 5%, adult day down 5%. Anyone quoting several-year-old figures is either careless or picking the number that suits them.