Memory Care Communities in Grand Rapids, Michigan

Grand Rapids is one of Michigan’s most expensive cities for memory care. The nearby city of Ann Arbor is the most costly overall at $7,616 per month. The state capital, Lansing, costs $5,391 per month, and Detroit costs $5,269 per month. At the end of the list, Battle Creek ranks as the cheapest city for memory care, with average costs of $4,250 per month. 

Note: Residential memory care is usually offered in assisted living facilities, and in general, memory care rates tend to be 20-30% higher than assisted living rates. No national database currently tracks memory care costs in the United States, so we’ve estimated the monthly memory care costs listed below by adding 25% to the rates listed in Genworth’s 2021 Cost of Care Survey.

Memory care in Grand Rapids costs an average of $6,035 per month. This is higher than Michigan’s average of $5,313 and the national average of $5,625.

While many families use their own funds or personal assets to pay for memory care, there are plenty of additional options to cover these costs. Some additional ways to finance memory care costs include:

• Veterans Benefits
• Life Insurance Policy
• Long-Term Care Insurance
• Reverse Mortgage

For more information about different ways to finance memory care, visit our Memory Care in Michigan page.

Several types of senior care in the Grand Rapids area are less expensive than memory care. Adult day care services cost an average of $2,221 per month, while an assisted living facility costs $4,828. Home care and home health care average $5,529 per month, and a semiprivate room in a nursing home is the most expensive option at $9,405.

The Michigan Department of Human Services Bureau of Children and Adult Licensing licenses memory care facilities as either Homes for the Aged (HFA) or Adult Foster Care Homes (AFC). Both must adhere to services and accommodations to maintain their licenses.  

In Michigan, the difference between Adult Foster Care Homes and Homes for the Aged comes down to the number of residents in the facility. Adult Foster Care Homes usually have 20 or fewer residents, while Homes for the Aged have 21 or more. 

• There are 263 physicians per 100,000 residents in Grand Rapids, compared to the national average of 210, and a very high number of these physicians accept Medicare. There are nine hospitals in the Grand Rapids area, including Mercy Health St. Mary’s Campus, one of the top 20 hospitals in Michigan, and Spectrum Health-Butterworth and Blodgett Campuses, which rank in the top 5. Grand Rapids is also only a two-hour drive from Ann Arbor, home to the University of Michigan Health-Ann Arbor, Michigan’s #1 ranked hospital. Overall, the health cost index in Grand Rapids is lower than the national average. 
• Only 12.4% of Grand Rapids’ citizens are seniors. However, there are 91 senior living communities within close range of the city to care for the elderly population. Memory Care costs in Grand Rapids are higher than the national average, but lower than many other cities in Michigan. 
• The cost of living in Grand Rapids is 12.2% lower than the national average and 1.8% lower than Michigan’s statewide average. Grand Rapids ranks as the 11th most affordable place to live in the United States. 
• In terms of weather and climate, Grand Rapids receives low levels of yearly rainfall. Winters are long and cold, and the city averages 64 inches of snow per year. The air quality in Grand Rapids is slightly below average. However, summers are generally pleasant, with temperatures averaging 70-85 degrees. 
• Grand Rapids ranks above the national average for violent and property crime, but crime rates have steadily decreased after peaking in 2008. It’s important to note that memory care facilities are exceptionally secure, with 24/7 monitoring and security measures, so residents are at a much lower risk of crime than the general population.