Right now, New Jersey is the most expensive state for assisted living — a one-bedroom apartment in the Garden State costs residents, on average, $6,587 per month. But that’s nothing compared to what that same apartment will cost in 2056, when the population of Americans over 65 will have doubled, according to a new analysis by Lincoln Financial Group (NYSE: LNC).
Specifically, by 2056, a one-bedroom assisted living apartment in New Jersey is projected to cost an average of $21,488 per month, according to Lincoln Financial Group’s website, whatcarecosts.com.
The What Care Costs website is meant to help financial advisors and their clients plan for their future long-term care needs. The website provides a searchable database of long-term-care cost information for states and metropolitan areas across the U.S. The data can be sorted by geography and type of care, and now, care costs can be projected well into the future.
Even in states where assisted living is comparatively affordable, inflation and increasing consumer demand will likely cause costs to skyrocket in the coming years. In North Dakota, for instance, it currently costs an average of $3,102 per month to rent a one-bedroom assisted living apartment. By 2056, it will cost $10,118 per month, according to website projections.
Most expensive to least expensive
Nationally, the average cost for a one-bedroom assisted living apartment is $4,560 per month. That’s up from April 2016, when the average cost of a one-bedroom assisted living apartment was $4,383 per month.
For the most part, the most and least expensive states for assisted living have remained consistent since last spring. Alaska and New Hampshire, which were among the most expensive states to rent a one-bedroom assisted living apartment in April 2016, have been edged out of the top five by Maryland and Maine.
Currently, the five most expensive states to rent a one-bedroom assisted living apartment are:
1. New Jersey, $6,587 per month
2. Massachusetts, $6,323 per month
3. Connecticut, $6,091 per month
4. Maryland, $6,005 per month
5. Maine, $5,928 per month
The five least expensive states to rent a one-bedroom assisted living apartment are:
1. North Dakota, $3,102 per month
2. Mississippi, $3,327 per month
3. Louisiana, $3,455 per month
4. Alabama, $3,536 per month
5. Arkansas, $3,653 per month
Written by Mary Kate Nelson
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