As the baby boomers grow older, they will require varying degrees of assistance. This means there will be increased demand for group homes for elderly people, also known as elderly foster care homes or adult foster care homes.

A group home for elderly people caters to the various individual needs of elderly people, while allowing them to live as independently as possible. The aim of group homes is to meet the needs of the elderly, not to restrict any part of their lives.

If you love caring for the aged, then you should consider starting a group home for elderly people. This means you can enrich yourself by taking advantage of the increasing demand. This article explains in detail, the steps involved in starting a group home for elderly people.

How to Start a Group Home for Elderly People – Sample Business Plan Template

Step 1: Define your limits

Your first step towards setting up a group home for elderly people is to define the level of care your home will offer. Will you offer services for the elderly that require constant medical assistance? Or will your services be restricted to those who have no serious health challenges?

However, you must bear in mind that restricting your services to only healthy (though frail) adults will mean restricting your profits, since most of the adults in foster homes require constant medical supervision. If, on the other hand, you choose to cater for seniors requiring round-the-clock medical assistance, you will need to hire trained practical nurses and medical aids to be on duty at all times.

Step 2: Craft a business plan

Before you take a plunge, you will need to know how feasible the business is in your location. You will need to first determine if there is a good market around you by finding out how many elderly people and how many adult group homes, are in your location.

Having figured that you have a decent market, you should create a comprehensive business plan. This will include details of how your group home will operate, what services it will offer, how you will forge ahead of the competition, and how much you will charge for your services.

Your business plan will also include details of the needed capital and facilities to start your adult group home, how you will obtain the capital, and how you will market your group home. If you don’t have all the required capital, you can consider sourcing additional funds from friends and relatives or taking a small business loan.

Step 3: Secure a good location

You will need to purchase or lease a good location for your group home for elderly people. Some states in the U.S. require that you must have a bathroom for three to four residents. The key takeaway here is, try to provide enough facilities to go round. The more comfortable your group home is, the more residents you will attract, and the more profit you will make.

The best location for your adult foster home is one that is close to places that fill the frequent needs of your residents, such as drug stores, senior centers, churches, and so on.

Step 4: Acquire the needed facilities

The facilities you will acquire will depend on whether your group home will accommodate seniors with health challenges. In any case, you will need a van; preferably one that can accommodate wheelchairs and other handicap aids—to transport residents to doctor’s appointments and other outings.

Step 5: Obtain all necessary licenses

It is important that you find out all the regulations in your state or country required for elderly group homes, and obtain all necessary licenses. Most likely, your prepared foster home will be inspected before you will be given the nod to start operations.

Some of your employees—such as kitchen employees—may also be required to obtain certain licenses. You must ensure that all licenses are obtained and that all requirements are met.

Step 6: Hire employees

The number and position of employees you will need depend on the size of your adult group home and the services you will render. You will need to hire personal aids, medical aids, practical nurses, office personnel, kitchen employees, serving employees, and so on.

Step 7: Prepare the needed documents

You will need to prepare contracts and forms for your residents. These will include the care to be provided, and a family member must sign the contract before the resident is accepted. It is important that you involve a seasoned attorney in the preparation of your contracts and forms to ensure that all your dealings are legal and that both you and the resident are protected.

Step 8: Market your group home

Having taken all the previous steps, it’s time to start promoting your adult care home and admitting residents. You can print handbills and flyers, and post them in senior centers, community centers, hospitals, and other places frequented by seniors. Throw up advertisements in local newspapers, too. In addition, you should set up a small website and social media profiles for marketing your business online.