Why Continuing Care Retirement Communities Should Partner with Senior Move Managers

How many times have you met with a senior who desperately needs your program? One who’s not safe living independently, is not eating right, is forgetting meds, and feels isolated? 

They would thrive in your facility, but they can’t take the steps to make it happen.

Enter senior move managers. Senior move managers can help ease a senior’s transition to your facility. 

That’s why partnering with a trusted senior move manager makes perfect sense for your organization. 

Seniors Need Extra Help with Their Moves

As a senior living coordinator, you welcome many new seniors to your facility. That means you, more than most, know their transition from living independently to needing more care is difficult.  

No doubt, you field many calls from soon-to-be residents and their families. You see, up close and personal, the emotional and physical challenges they face as they prepare to move. 

You offer assistance and advice during this time, but you often feel like clients need more. After all, you can’t be there while they pack and help coordinate their move. 

Imagine if you could say, “I know someone who can help with this.” 

What are Senior Move Managers?

Moving at any age is hard. Moving later in life is much harder.

Senior move managers are service professionals that assist in all types of senior moves. From independent living to retirement communities or facilities that provide care and assistance, senior move managers have done it all.

Senior move managers recognize that senior moves are different from other types of moves. The National Association of Senior Move Managers (NASMM) calls them “so much more than” regular moves. 

 What Do Senior Move Managers Do?

Senior move managers help with all aspects of senior moves. 

First, they help clients prepare for the move. They: 

• Help define priorities for new living space.
• Sort through belongings.
• Help with decision-making in keeping or letting go of belongings.
• Find good homes for belongings.
• Organize moving materials (boxes, tape, labels, etc.)
• Arrange delivery and pick-ups of donations.
• Stay on track with the moving schedule.
• Arrange and track sales of personal items, collections, etc.

Senior move managers coordinate moving tasks, so nothing important gets forgotten. They arrange movers for the day of the move. (BONUS: They usually have a few companies they trust. This eliminates your clients needing to look for a moving company.)

Senior move managers create a floor plan for the new place. They make sure that everything that gets moved will fit in the space available.

SMMs ensure that their clients make progress on their move. They pack and label boxes on each visit. Often, they remove items for donation on their first visit.

Senior Move Managers on Moving Day

Moving day looks a lot different when you have a senior move manager on board. SMMs work with families and residents to determine the best way for the move to proceed. 

Some residents want be present during the move. Often, though, seeing everything being moved is too upsetting. The hub-bub of moving can be confusing for seniors. In those cases, families may take their loved one out for a few hours during the commotion. 

The SMM directs the movers to place belongings according to the floor plan. They troubleshoot any issues that arise. They’ll get clothes in closets, bathroom supplies unpacked, and hang photos. 

The resident comes in when the movers are done. Their place looks settled. Their favorite things are displayed with care. 

Why Moving is Emotionally Hard for Seniors

Equally as important, senior move managers provide emotional support. 

Moving later in life is enormously emotional. That’s why moving at that age is “so much more than” other moves. 

Transitioning to a senior living facility, seniors have to:

• Confront their loss of physical independence.
• Cope with change.
• Sort through memories as they sort their belongings.
• Give up a lot of their belongings, some of which have great sentimental value.
• Face living with strangers.
• Give up some level of privacy. 

It takes a lot of compassion and skill to help people facing a senior move. 

Senior Move Managers Help Your Residents Start Off on the Right Foot

Think about these two scenarios. 

In one scenario: 

Your new resident hired regular movers for their move. This resident has been overwhelmed with the whole moving process. Moving day was very stressful. 

This resident arrives exhausted. They’ve been fighting with loved ones for weeks or months or longer. Their stuff is haphazardly arranged. 

This resident is tired and cranky. They are angry and uninterested in any of your activities or programming. 

In another scenario:

Your new resident worked with a senior move manager for their move. The senior move manager has coordinated much of the move. They’ve helped ease the burden of sorting and purging belongings. 

The senior move manager has spent time getting to know this person. They listened to their stories. They know what and who are important to this person. Heck, they even smoothed over family tensions.

The SMM helped unpack. They put everything just so. 

Your new resident is calmer, more rested, and less upset about their move. They are open to meeting new people. 

Which one of these scenarios is best for the person moving? Which one is best for their new neighbors? For you and your staff? 

Benefits of Partnering with Local Senior Move Managers

You’ll see very quickly how helpful senior move managers can be. 

Here’s just some of benefits of partnering with a senior move manager. They:

• Learn the ins and outs of your facility. 
• Know where to have movers park.
• Know where to the find the service elevators. 
• Learn your facility’s schedules. 
• Act as the point of contact for all moving-related issues.
• Create a smoother, less disruptive move for everyone.
• Ensure moves go more quickly. 
• Become a known entity to your organization.

Also, because SMMs are experts at floor plans, you won’t see movers lugging out furniture that didn’t fit in the room.

When it comes right down to it, senior move managers benefit everyone who is impacted by a resident move.

Interested in partnering with us? Contact us to see how we can serve you and your clients.