Buying an assisted living community in Space Coast and Volusia

• Steady occupancy that comes from referrals by hospitals, physicians, placement agencies and residents' families, not from discounts.
• Care levels priced to match what each resident needs, with assessments updated as needs grow.
• An administrator and shift leads who have been there for years and know the residents and families.
• Low caregiver turnover and little reliance on temporary staffing agencies.
• Clean inspection reports from Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA), with no serious violations. These are public, so you can read them before your first call.
• A building in good repair, with its generator and fuel plan already approved.
• Licenses that match the residents it actually serves, such as extended congregate care or limited nursing services.

• Occupancy history. Month by month for at least two years, with move-ins, move-outs and the reasons residents left.
• Inspection record. Inspection surveys, complaint investigations, fines and any moratorium (freeze) on admissions, and whether anything is under appeal.
• Staffing. Wages compared with nearby communities, overtime, use of temporary staffing agencies, and whether every shift has enough staff for what residents actually need.
• Liability. Insurance cost and claims history, especially falls, wandering residents and abuse or neglect allegations.
• The building. Roof, air conditioning, sprinklers and fire alarm, the generator and its fuel, flood zone and windstorm insurance, and whether the real estate is included or leased.
• Nursing home risks. A nursing home's Medicare agreement passes to the new owner along with any open plan of correction (42 CFR 489.18). A buyer of the assets can also become liable for Medicaid overpayments that were identifiable 90 days before the sale, if the seller doesn't pay them (section 400.179). Get those figures from AHCA first.

• What has occupancy looked like over the last few years, and where do new residents come from?
• How do you set care levels and charges, and when did you last raise them?
• How long have your administrator and shift leads been here, and how do you cover nights and weekends?
• What did your last few AHCA inspections find, and what did you do about it?
• How did the building and residents get through the last hurricane or long power outage?
• How many residents pay privately, and which Medicaid plans do you work with?
• Do you care for residents with dementia today, and how are you preparing for the new memory care license?

This region covers Brevard, Volusia and Flagler counties: Melbourne, Palm Bay, Titusville, Cocoa, Cocoa Beach, Merritt Island, Daytona Beach, Port Orange, Ormond Beach, DeLand, Deltona, New Smyrna Beach and Palm Coast. Brevard's economy is built around space. Rockets launch often from Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, and aerospace and defense manufacturers and their suppliers employ engineers, technicians and machinists across the county. Port Canaveral is a major cruise port.

Volusia depends more on tourism, beaches and big events, with Daytona's motorsports and motorcycle rallies drawing crowds. Health care and a large retired population matter too. Flagler County, around Palm Coast, is mostly residential. Machine shops, electrical and engineering firms, home service companies, marine businesses and restaurants all have a place here.

Brevard's fortunes follow the space and defense programs. A company that sells to aerospace firms should be able to show you how many customers it depends on and how secure their work is. Business in Volusia spikes around big events and the winter season, so look at revenue by month.

The whole coast faces storm risk. In 2022, Hurricane Ian brought flooding to much of Volusia, and Hurricane Nicole, which came ashore near Vero Beach six weeks later, washed away beaches and seawalls along the Volusia coast. Beachfront property needs careful insurance and structural checks. The Indian River Lagoon and the St. Johns River make boating and fishing part of daily life, which keeps the marine trades busy. Palm Coast and the Palm Bay area have added many new homes, and companies serving those areas have grown with them.