04 Dec Retirement money held hostage

Continuing Care Retirement Communities, or CCRCs, have long been seen as attractive places for seniors to settle. If residents need increased health care, they don’t need to move. Seniors make a large “entrance fee” to move in, but CCRC contracts typically promise a large percentage of the entrance fee will be returned to the resident when they move or if they die.

However, there is one major caveat: the refund is only returned after the unit is occupied by a new resident, and there’s no time limit on when the refunds must be made. Because of this, former residents find their money – often hundreds of  thousands of dollars – is being held hostage. Read this Bamboozled column on NJ.com to learn more about this case, and how you can support legislation for fair refunds.