My mom has moved into Homestead at Hamilton. It's clean, and there are two sides, assisted living and independent living; they're treated very differently. The Independent living, of course, they're more ambulatory, so they can go to a pub, or the dining room for dinner or a cafe with friends. For assisted living, sometimes they are served lunch or dinner in Styrofoam containers, not even on a plate which I find very disturbing. Anyway, you're paying the money for the assistance. There's also a very large difference between caregivers. I guess that's going to be anywhere, but some are very nice, and some are just bullies. I don't think they give the same consideration to the assisted living side as they do to the independent living. The layout is sufficient, you can put a kitchen table in there and a little couch. I don't think it's worth what we're paying at all. In the lounge, there's a table where four people sit up, but that's all. They need to be more attentive to health. There's one doctor. If you ask to see a doctor, it takes a week for them to come in, I find that unacceptable. When medications or something is needed, it's a week's delay. The food is fine. There are brand new owners too, new people bought it. I don't know if it'll change. So far, all I know is they can't leave their desks anymore. So, if there's a delivery, it waits until a maintenance man can come and do it. When the priest comes in, they're not allowed to go find him and ask him to go to rooms. New rules are going into place.

My parents moved in, in July, Dad independent, Mom in assisted living. After an initial good start the place went downhill fast after the summer. While the public areas are kept clean and it’s very new facility, don’t be fooled by it. After all the college-age summer staff went back to school they were not replaced. When my mother rings her call button for assistance from the aides, half the time the staff does not show up to assist her, and I see them congregating socializing instead of helping residents. If the driver for the very limited transportation van goes on vacation, tough luck for the residents, no replacement is offered. The food quality has gone downhill. Service is incredibly slow in the dining rooms to the point that even managers have to go in to help out. The once-a-week cleaning in the independent apartments is quite lackluster. The administrative staff are not responsive to complaints other than to say “it’s on a work order” and then nothing changes. It seems as if they have orders to keep their spending down from corporate office for their bottom line. But at these prices I expect a heck of a lot more. My family is beside itself.

I chose Homestead at Hamilton for my mom because she can afford it, and it's a beautiful place that offers everything that she needs; she'll get assistance with her medication and with whatever she needs. They have all the activities, a movie theater in the building, a bistro with good food, a gym with equipment, and yoga and chair exercises. The size of the rooms are smaller than we hoped, but the rest of the place is wonderful.

Homestead at Hamilton is a beautiful community. The first staff member who helped me during the tour was very helpful. So many people were helping and talking to my aunt. It was really great. When my aunt went there, someone else assisted her and sort of freaked her out about the cost because she didn't know about her insurance. It's a new community so it's not filled yet, but they have problems. I still think it's the better place for my aunt. They have two dining areas that look great, and I like the fact that it's open 24/7 because it means you can go eat any time you want.