Assisted living costs about $70K a year. One Maryland family says living together helps them offset expenses

Victoria Vesovski

Sat, February 21, 2026 at 10:15 PM GMT+9 6 min read

As the cost of caregiving rises alongside the price of everyday life, more Americans are caught between generations, financially responsible for aging parents while still raising their own children.

Lauren McCadney is among them.

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In her late 50s, McCadney moved from Chicago to Maryland as her father’s health needs grew. She settled near her brother James’ family of four. When the five-bedroom house next door to him came on the market, she purchased it and moved in with her sister, Cheryl. It was a decision that reshaped how their family would navigate care.

The two households now operate as a shared, multigenerational unit, distributing both the emotional and financial responsibilities of caregiving. It’s a model that has become less about lifestyle and more about necessity.

McCadney’s situation reflects a growing reality for the current sandwich generation. In a Policygenius survey, 66% of respondents reported feeling stressed by the cost of supporting at least three generations: parents, children and themselves (1).

“I feel very blessed and fortunate that we have the situation we have,” McCadney told Business Insider (2), “because I have friends who are the primary solo caregiver, and that is hard.”

The cost of aging

For much of the early 20th century, aging in America was largely a family affair. Older adults lived with relatives, care happened at home and multigenerational households were the norm. That model began to unravel after World War II, as families dispersed geographically and institutional senior care expanded.

Today, aging independently has become financially untenable for many Americans. A 2023 report from Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies found that fewer than 15% of adults aged 75 and older living alone in major cities could afford assisted living or daily home health care without drawing on their savings (3). With Medicare covering little long-term support and Medicaid access often limited, families are left to bridge the gap themselves.

In 2024, the median cost of assisted living in the U.S. was about $5,900 per month, or roughly $70,800 per year (4). Nursing home care was even more expensive, averaging $9,277 a month for a semi-private room and $10,646 for a private room, with costs varying widely by location and level of care (5).

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“Unless you’re a billionaire, I don’t think that most people have the luxury of saying cost is not a consideration,” Lauren said.

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That reality shapes how the McCadney family operates. Spread across two neighboring homes, caregiving is shared and fluid — divided by time, capacity and need rather than formal roles. Lauren renovated her home to accommodate her father’s mobility and to create space for Cheryl. Their brother manages their father’s medical and personal care, while Cheryl provides daytime support. Lauren handles outings and social activities, so when one person steps away, another steps in.

By keeping their father at home rather than moving him into assisted living or a nursing facility, the family has avoided significant costs. Beyond money, the father is happier being cared for by family.

"That’s something you cannot put a price on,” Lauren said.

Challenges of two roofs

Sharing caregiving across two homes has reduced expenses but narrowed the family’s margin for flexibility and privacy. Drew and Carter, James’ twins who live at home to save on rent, contribute labor instead — mowing lawns, running errands and driving relatives to medical appointments.

That kind of help isn’t unique. According to AARP, family caregivers provided roughly $600 billion in unpaid care in 2021 (6). For James and his wife, Lorri, the setup comes with trade-offs. Both work full-time, and as their children near adulthood, they expect some responsibilities to ease. Instead, caregiving has only grown more demanding. Lorri said there are times when she sees her husband feeling exhausted or frustrated.

James, who works for Maryland’s Department of Human Services, describes the situation as a constant calculation of weighing time, energy and attention across his family.

“Am I taking anything away from my children?” he asked. “We hope that we’re doing all the right things.”

What families can do

The family knows their current setup won’t last forever. Lauren worries about keeping up with her home as she ages, while James and Lorri hope to eventually downsize and travel more. Lauren also isn’t sure who will take care of her one day. She and her friends have talked about buying land together and building small homes so they can age side by side and share help when needed.

Those conversations, experts say, are exactly where planning should start. Talking openly about money, care preferences and expectations before a crisis can help families avoid rushed decisions that often come with a hefty price tag. Understanding the cost of different options, even if formal care feels far off, can make the future feel less abstract and more manageable.

It’s also important to think beyond medical bills. Caregiving often comes with costs such as reduced work hours or emotional burnout, and those trade-offs can affect long-term financial security even when no one is being paid.

For many families, planning may also mean getting creative about housing, sharing responsibilities with siblings, living with extended family or exploring communal arrangements that spread both the cost and care. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, but starting the conversation early can make the path forward feel less overwhelming.

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Article sources

We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines_._

Policy Genius (1); Business Insider (2); Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University (3); The Seniors’ Center (4); A Place for Mom (5); AARP (6).

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

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