Compare Communities the Way We Do
Rate every community you tour on the same twelve points, weight what matters to your family, and let the numbers settle the argument. Score up to four communities side by side, add your own notes, then print the page or send it to an advisor who knows the buildings.
Above & Beyond Senior Living
Community Scorecard
Add up to four communities, set how much each point matters to your family, then score every community on the same twelve points. The scores update as you go. Nothing is saved unless you ask us to email it.
Night shift staffing
Good looks like a named number of caregivers awake overnight, not on call from another floor.
Staff turnover
Good looks like the director and several caregivers having been there more than two years.
Cleanliness and smell
Good looks like clean air at 3pm on a weekday, not just at the front door in the morning.
Food quality
Good looks like a meal you would eat yourself, served when residents are actually hungry.
Activities that fit
Good looks like things your person would truly join, not a full calendar nobody attends.
Care pricing transparency
Good looks like a written tier sheet that shows what moves you from one care level to the next.
Rate increase history
Good looks like the last three years of increases in writing, usually 3 to 8 percent a year.
Discharge policy clarity
Good looks like a plain answer on what behavior or care need would end the stay.
Dementia training of staff
Good looks like required dementia training for every caregiver, with hours you can verify.
Nurse availability
Good looks like a nurse in the building daily, and a clear answer for nights and weekends.
Distance from family
Good looks like a drive you will still make on a Tuesday evening in February.
Gut feeling
Good looks like staff greeting residents by name while nobody is watching.
Weighted score out of 100
Community 1-
Email me this scorecard
Talk through these with an advisor
We know most of these buildings. Send us your scores and we will tell you what the numbers are missing.
How does the scorecard work?
Add each community by name, then score it 1 to 5 on twelve points. Set a weight on every point first, so night staffing can count double while distance counts half. The scorecard turns your ratings into a weighted score out of 100 and highlights the leader as you go.
Points you have not rated yet are left out of the math, so a half finished card still gives you an honest comparison of what you have seen. Nothing is stored on your device and nothing is saved unless you ask us to email it to you. For the long form version of this method, read our written guide to comparing communities.
What should you score, and why these twelve?
These are the twelve things that decide whether a placement holds up a year later. Four are about staffing, because a beautiful building with two aides overnight will not keep your person safe. Three are about money, because a rate structure nobody will put in writing is the most common reason families move twice.
The rest cover daily life and your own honest reaction. Cleanliness at three in the afternoon, food you would eat, activities your person would truly join, a nurse you can reach, a drive you will still make in February, and the feeling you get watching staff talk to residents. Our guide to red flags on a tour covers what a low score usually means.
How do you use it on tour day?
Print the blank card before you go and fill it in by hand while you walk, or bring it on your phone and score one community at a time. Do it in the parking lot before you drive away, while the smell of the dining room is still fresh. Waiting until evening turns twelve honest ratings into one vague impression.
Ask the same questions at every stop so the scores mean something. Our list of questions to ask on a tour lines up with these twelve points. When the cards are done, send them to us. Reading tours with families is part of how we work, and it is free.