You may be able to afford assisted living on a fixed income, but the answer depends on your total expenses, reliable income, available savings and the level of care you need. Your pension does not necessarily have to cover the entire fee if you have other sustainable sources of support. However, a budget that only just balances today may become unaffordable when fees or care needs increase.
At Brooklyn Care in Pretoria, we encourage families to start with a complete financial picture. Looking at the monthly accommodation fee alone can make assisted living seem impossible. Equally, overlooking medical expenses and future increases can make a placement appear more affordable than it really is.
Our advice is to compare the full cost of your current living arrangement with the full cost of assisted living, then test whether your plan can withstand changes.
What Does Assisted Living at Brooklyn Care Cost?
At the time of writing, Brooklyn Care’s website lists assisted living at R22 300 per month, excluding nursing. It also lists a frail care single room at R26 900 per month. These are different care arrangements, so families should request an individual assessment and written quote rather than assume either rate applies automatically.
Confirm the current tariff, room availability, included services and any additional charges before making a decision. Website prices can change, and the appropriate care package depends on the resident’s needs.
One distinction is particularly important: a facility offering nursing services does not mean that every accommodation package includes those services.
Read our latest blog: What’s the Difference Between Assisted Living and Nursing Homes?
Compare Assisted Living With What You Already Spend
Living at home can feel cheaper because the bills arrive separately. Groceries, rates, electricity, security and occasional caregiving may come from different accounts or be paid by different family members.
Add those payments together before comparing them with a facility fee.
Calculate Your Actual Monthly Home Costs
- Rent, bond repayments or levies.
- Property rates and municipal services.
- Electricity, water, telephone and internet.
- Groceries and household supplies.
- Cleaning, laundry and garden services.
- Security and home maintenance.
- Transport to appointments and shops.
- Paid caregivers and additional family-funded assistance.
- Medical aid, medication and other healthcare expenses.
Include irregular expenses by working out a monthly allowance for them. A large repair bill may not happen every month, but it still affects what you can afford over a year.
Subtract Only the Costs That Will Actually Stop
Meals, laundry and room cleaning may be included in your accommodation package. Ask for written confirmation of all inclusions, including utilities and any limits.
Do not assume every household expense disappears after moving. If you keep your home, you may still owe bond repayments, rates, insurance, levies and maintenance costs. Medical aid and personal expenses also continue.
This is where a realistic comparison matters. You need to know which costs are replaced, which remain and which are added.
Which Expenses Are Easy to Overlook?
A clearly explained monthly fee is only one part of your budget. Personal healthcare and care-related expenses can still sit outside the accommodation charge.
Medical Aid and Out-of-Pocket Healthcare
Brooklyn Care’s published FAQs state that medical aid is required for residency. Confirm the current admission requirements and whether your existing cover is suitable.
Do not assume medical aid will pay your monthly assisted living bill. Ask your scheme directly what benefits apply to consultations, prescribed medication, therapy and any clinically indicated treatment.
Visiting doctors and physiotherapists may bill separately. Scheme limits, co-payments and differences between practitioner charges and scheme reimbursement can leave expenses for you to pay.
Medication and Personal Consumables
Medication administration and the purchase of medication are separate costs. Ask whether prescription costs, pharmacy delivery and blister-packing charges are included or billed separately.
Also budget for items such as:
- Incontinence products.
- Toiletries and personal grooming.
- Clothing and footwear.
- Walking aids and other prescribed equipment.
- Transport not included in the package.
- Personal telephone expenses.
Admission and Moving Costs
Brooklyn Care’s published information describes a refundable deposit and a separately charged pre-admission evaluation. Request the current amounts and terms in writing.
You may also need money for moving, storing belongings or preparing a property for rental or sale. These upfront costs should be funded separately from your ordinary monthly budget.
A Hypothetical Budget: Margaret’s Affordability Challenge
The following example is a budget simulation, not a real resident’s case history. It shows why a placement can appear affordable while still leaving a family financially exposed.
What Margaret Spends at Home
Margaret lives alone in Pretoria East and receives a private pension of R16 500 per month. Her illustrative monthly household costs are:
- Housing costs, levies and rates: R3 800.
- Groceries and household supplies: R4 500.
- Utilities and internet: R2 600.
- Part-time home care: R6 500.
- Maintenance and garden services: R1 200.
- Security: R600.
- Total household and home-support costs: R19 200.
These costs already exceed her pension by R2 700. If her medical aid premium is another R2 700, her combined expenditure reaches R21 900, creating a R5 400 monthly shortfall before other personal expenses.
Margaret is therefore already relying on savings or family help. Remaining at home is not automatically the financially sustainable option.
How Additional Income Changes the Calculation
Suppose Margaret moves into assisted living and the family explores renting out her home. For this illustration, assume the property produces R7 000 a month after ongoing property costs and a realistic allowance for tax and maintenance.
Her two adult children also agree to contribute R1 000 each per month.
- Private pension: R16 500.
- Illustrative net rental income: R7 000.
- Combined family contributions: R2 000.
- Total monthly funding: R25 500.
Against an assisted living fee of R22 300 and medical aid of R2 700, the remaining amount is R500.
The arithmetic balances, but the plan is fragile. That R500 still needs to accommodate any personal costs not already included, and it provides little protection against unexpected expenses.
Our view is that this is a starting point for further planning, rather than proof that the placement is sustainably affordable.
Stress-Test Your Budget Before Committing
Ask whether your funding plan survives a difficult month and a more expensive year. There is no single cash-buffer percentage that guarantees affordability. The reserve you need depends on your income sources, care needs and access to additional support.
What Happens If Rental Income Stops?
In Margaret’s example, losing two months of R7 000 rental income removes R14 000 from the plan. The actual funding requirement could be larger because rates, insurance and other property expenses may continue during the vacancy.
Allow for late payments, repairs, agent fees and tenant changes. Rental income should be assessed after costs, rather than treating the advertised rent as money available for care.
What Happens When Fees Increase?
Ask the facility how annual increases are determined and when they take effect.
For illustration only, an 8% increase on R22 300 would add R1 784 per month, bringing that fee to R24 084. This is not a forecast of Brooklyn Care’s next increase. It demonstrates how quickly a R500 surplus could disappear.
Medical aid premiums and personal expenses may rise too. Compare those increases with the likely growth in your pension and other income.
What Happens If You Need More Care?
Your future budget should consider the possibility of greater assistance with mobility, personal care or nursing.
Ask for an explanation of how care needs are reassessed, which services attract additional charges and what happens if a different room or care setting becomes necessary.
Do not assume that today’s assisted living fee will cover every future need.
Should You Rent Out or Sell Your Home?
There is no universal answer. Keeping a property may provide income and preserve an asset, while selling may release capital and remove landlord responsibilities. Both options have costs and risks.
Before deciding, compare:
- Expected rent after all expenses and tax.
- Outstanding debt and ongoing ownership costs.
- Vacancy, maintenance and tenant-payment risks.
- Selling costs and the net proceeds available.
- Your need for accessible emergency funds.
- How long the money may need to support your care.
A home is often a pensioner’s largest asset. Avoid selling under pressure without understanding the long-term effect on your finances.
Do Not Confuse Investment Withdrawals With Guaranteed Income
Withdrawing 7% or 8% of invested capital each year does not mean the investment safely earns that amount. Withdrawals may consume capital, particularly after fees, tax, inflation or poor market performance.
A living annuity also carries investment and longevity risk. Its income is not guaranteed for life at your chosen level. It is a retirement-income product with specific funding rules, so selling a house does not automatically mean the proceeds can be paid directly into one.
Before selling property, changing retirement withdrawals or choosing an income product, consult an appropriately authorised financial adviser. Ask them to model several scenarios, including higher care costs and a longer retirement.
How Can Families Share the Cost Responsibly?
Family contributions can make assisted living possible, but they need to be dependable. An informal promise may become difficult to maintain when someone loses income or faces their own emergency.
Have an open discussion before admission and record:
- Who will contribute and how much.
- When payments will be made.
- How annual increases will be handled.
- Who will pay unexpected expenses.
- What happens if a contributor can no longer help.
- When the family will review the arrangement.
Build an accessible emergency reserve where possible. For perspective, three months of a R22 300 accommodation fee equals R66 900, before medical aid and personal expenses. This is an illustration of the scale of funding involved, rather than a universal minimum.
The resident’s preferences and financial independence should remain central to these discussions.
What Should You Check in the Residency Agreement?
Ask for the written quote and agreement early enough to read them carefully. Verbal explanations should match the documents you sign.
Deposit and Refund Conditions
Confirm the deposit amount, how it is held, permitted deductions and the refund process. Ask whether it can be used towards the final month’s fees rather than assuming this is allowed.
Do not rely on general rental-deposit advice to interpret every care agreement. If a term is unclear, seek advice about the particular contract and applicable South African law.
Increases and Additional Charges
Check when annual increases occur, how they are calculated and what notice is provided. Separately, ask how changes in care needs affect fees and when those charges become payable.
Request written clarification of any wording that allows charges to change without explaining the process.
Hospital Absences and Ending the Agreement
Ask whether accommodation fees continue during a hospital stay and whether any services are credited while the resident is away.
Also confirm the notice requirements for moving out, the arrangements following a resident’s death and the deadlines for removing belongings. These terms can affect both the resident’s budget and the family’s responsibilities.
What If Private Assisted Living Is Beyond Your Budget?
Our honest advice is to explore alternatives early. Agreeing to a private fee you cannot sustain may lead to another disruptive move later.
The aim is to find suitable support that protects both your wellbeing and your financial position.
Explore Subsidised Residential Care
Government-supported residential care may be available to qualifying older people who need full-time care and cannot afford private provision. Eligibility involves assessment, and placement depends on suitable beds being available.
Contact your local Department of Social Development office or a social worker for guidance on the application and subsidy assessment process.
Do not assume every non-profit home offers subsidised places or accepts a SASSA grant as full payment. Ask each facility about eligibility, fees, required contributions and waiting lists.
Consider Community or Home-Based Support
If your needs can be met safely at home, targeted assistance may be more manageable than residential care. Options to investigate include community meal programmes, day services, transport assistance and scheduled help with personal care.
Compare the complete cost and suitability of the arrangement. A few hours of support cannot replace continuous supervision when someone needs help throughout the day and night.
Ask About Different Accommodation Options
A shared room or different accommodation category may cost less, where available. Ask for the current options and associated care arrangements.
Choose accommodation that meets your assessed needs. A lower price does not make an unsuitable level of care a safe choice.
When Should You Involve a Professional?
A social worker can help assess your circumstances, explain support routes and assist with applications. They cannot guarantee an available subsidised bed or immediate placement.
A suitably authorised financial adviser can help assess assets, income, tax, investment risk and how long your resources may last. Verify their authorisation and ask how they charge before proceeding.
Bring in professional support before making major asset decisions, rather than waiting until savings are nearly exhausted.
Take the First Step Towards a Realistic Care Budget
You do not need to have every answer before asking about assisted living. Start with your current income, actual expenses, savings and care requirements.
At Brooklyn Care, we encourage families to discuss affordability openly. Request a current written quote, clarify what is included and ask how costs could change if your needs increase.
Contact Brooklyn Care in Pretoria to arrange a viewing and discuss a pre-admission assessment. A clear understanding of the care required is the starting point for deciding whether the arrangement fits your budget.
